Market rankings · South Dakota
Pet businesses in South Dakota
Every metro area, small-town market and county in South Dakota, ranked by the Groundwork market score for pet businesses, with competitor counts and household spending for each.
- Listings
- 469
- 37 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 260
- +19.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $305.2M
- On pets
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.8
- 23% above the U.S.
- Spending per listing
- $651K
- 26% below the U.S.
- Rank among states
- #41 of 51
- Market score 32 · Lower middle
A site report maps the pet businesses on map listings around any address in South Dakota by name and distance, and the spending within reach.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
South Dakota has 469 pet businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 37 are chain locations, or 8%, against 17% across the U.S. That comes to 12.8 for every 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.
Households in South Dakota spend about $305.2M a year on pets, or $835 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. Spread across 469 pet businesses, that is $651K per business, 26% below the U.S. figure of $878K.
In 2023, official counts showed 260 businesses with payroll in South Dakota classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores, up 19.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,406 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 11.4% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 19 SBA-backed loans worth $10.2M have gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in South Dakota.
Among the 50 states and DC, South Dakota ranks #41 for pet businesses, with a Groundwork market score of 32 (lower middle). Of the 3 scored metro areas in or partly in South Dakota, the Sioux Falls metro area scores highest (70). Of the 8 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Dakota, the Yankton area scores highest (57).
Every market in South Dakota for pet businesses
Download the ranking (CSV)Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in South Dakota, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.
Metro areas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sioux Falls, SD-MN | 70 | 120 | 9.8 | $909K | +9.5% | #53 of 387 |
| Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | 62 | 42 | 7.6 | $1.1M | +1.0% | #98 of 387 |
| 2Rapid City, SD | 37 | 79 | 12.6 | $666K | +6.2% | #293 of 387 |
Small-town markets
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yankton, SD | 57 | 11 | 11.3 | $706K | +1.5% | #176 of 527 |
| 2Spearfish, SD | 54 | 15 | 12.4 | $644K | +14.0% | #225 of 527 |
| 3Huron, SD | 50 | 10 | 13.3 | $576K | +2.4% | #280 of 527 |
| 4Brookings, SD | 48 | 19 | 13.8 | $589K | +9.6% | #308 of 527 |
| 5Pierre, SD | 45 | 11 | 12.9 | $670K | −0.5% | #330 of 527 |
| 6Watertown, SD | 34 | 22 | 17.6 | $444K | +4.3% | #438 of 527 |
| 7Aberdeen, SD | 30 | 29 | 16.2 | $506K | −1.5% | #461 of 527 |
| 8Mitchell, SD | 30 | 20 | 18.2 | $431K | +0.6% | #462 of 527 |
| Vermillion, SD | Not scored | 1 | 1.8 | $4.1M | +0.2% |
Counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lincoln County, SD | 74 | 28 | 10.0 | $990K | +17.5% | #179 of 2,200 |
| 2Minnehaha County, SD | 73 | 81 | 9.6 | $904K | +7.6% | #200 of 2,200 |
| 3Union County, SD | 70 | 9 | 12.3 | $770K | +3.3% | #294 of 2,200 |
| 4Pennington County, SD | 54 | 55 | 11.9 | $702K | +6.6% | #916 of 2,200 |
| 5Yankton County, SD | 51 | 11 | 11.3 | $706K | +1.5% | #1,050 of 2,200 |
| 6Lawrence County, SD | 49 | 15 | 12.4 | $644K | +14.0% | #1,156 of 2,200 |
| 7Hughes County, SD | 43 | 8 | 11.0 | $783K | −0.9% | #1,379 of 2,200 |
| 8Brookings County, SD | 43 | 19 | 13.8 | $589K | +9.6% | #1,402 of 2,200 |
| 9Beadle County, SD | 40 | 10 | 13.3 | $576K | +2.4% | #1,529 of 2,200 |
| 10Meade County, SD | 37 | 18 | 15.0 | $560K | +2.7% | #1,644 of 2,200 |
| 11Butte County, SD | 36 | 7 | 16.3 | $516K | +5.5% | #1,694 of 2,200 |
| 12Codington County, SD | 29 | 22 | 17.6 | $444K | +4.3% | #1,910 of 2,200 |
| 13Davison County, SD | 27 | 15 | 16.9 | $458K | +0.6% | #1,965 of 2,200 |
| 14Lake County, SD | 26 | 12 | 25.4 | $333K | −0.2% | #1,995 of 2,200 |
| 15Brown County, SD | 25 | 26 | 16.0 | $509K | −1.7% | #2,009 of 2,200 |
| Clay County, SD | Not scored | 1 | 1.8 | $4.1M | +0.2% | |
| Oglala Lakota County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | −2.3% | |
| Roberts County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 5.5 | $1.4M | −0.1% | |
| Charles Mix County, SD | Not scored | 7 | 23.1 | $336K | −0.5% | |
| Todd County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | −4.9% | |
| Custer County, SD | Not scored | 6 | 13.5 | $650K | +13.2% | |
| Turner County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 8.4 | $955K | +7.3% | |
| Grant County, SD | Not scored | 4 | 13.2 | $600K | 0.0% | |
| Hutchinson County, SD | Not scored | 11 | 37.8 | $224K | −0.1% | |
| Fall River County, SD | Not scored | 6 | 16.5 | $444K | +7.1% |
Show all 66 counties
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bon Homme County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 12.4 | $598K | +3.8% | |
| Moody County, SD | Not scored | 6 | 23.4 | $360K | +4.5% | |
| Hamlin County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 9.1 | $949K | +11.9% | |
| Spink County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 8.0 | $996K | −3.0% | |
| McCook County, SD | Not scored | 4 | 18.0 | $494K | +5.2% | |
| Tripp County, SD | Not scored | 5 | 22.1 | $329K | +1.8% | |
| Day County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 8.4 | $956K | +0.8% | |
| Brule County, SD | Not scored | 9 | 46.0 | $179K | +0.5% | |
| Walworth County, SD | Not scored | 4 | 16.6 | $447K | −1.4% | |
| Kingsbury County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 14.2 | $563K | +1.6% | |
| Dewey County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | +3.8% | |
| Marshall County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 18.2 | $466K | +2.9% | |
| Deuel County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | +2.6% | |
| Edmunds County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 18.4 | $479K | +1.0% | |
| Gregory County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 12.4 | $609K | +1.1% | |
| Clark County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 22.5 | $342K | +4.7% | |
| Corson County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | −2.8% | |
| Lyman County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 16.8 | $483K | −0.1% | |
| Hanson County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 17.7 | $493K | −0.3% | |
| Bennett County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 21.7 | $287K | −2.6% | |
| Hand County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 21.4 | $384K | −0.7% | |
| Stanley County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 23.3 | $366K | +1.8% | |
| Perkins County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | +0.9% | |
| Douglas County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | +1.9% | |
| Jackson County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 36.1 | $170K | −4.7% | |
| Aurora County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 18.8 | $409K | +2.6% | |
| Potter County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 18.8 | $425K | −3.8% | |
| Sanborn County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 31.7 | $256K | +2.5% | |
| Ziebach County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 27.2 | $279K | −0.1% | |
| Miner County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 32.2 | $251K | −0.8% | |
| McPherson County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 21.9 | $369K | −2.2% | |
| Faulk County, SD | Not scored | 3 | 34.8 | $222K | +2.4% | |
| Mellette County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | +11.5% | |
| Buffalo County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | −6.8% | |
| Jerauld County, SD | Not scored | 4 | 51.0 | $156K | +0.6% | |
| Haakon County, SD | Not scored | 1 | 14.6 | $574K | −3.6% | |
| Campbell County, SD | Not scored | 2 | 26.5 | $306K | −0.1% | |
| Sully County, SD | Not scored | 0 | 0.0 | n/a | +1.9% | |
| Hyde County, SD | Not scored | 1 | 19.9 | $426K | −4.6% | |
| Harding County, SD | Not scored | 1 | 20.1 | $431K | +2.2% | |
| Jones County, SD | Not scored | 1 | 29.2 | $266K | −1.5% |
Markets with fewer than 5 pet businesses on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.
Questions
How many pet businesses are in South Dakota?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 469 pet businesses in South Dakota. 37 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 260 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023, up 19.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 378 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in South Dakota spend on pets?
About $305.2M a year, or $835 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 469 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $651K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 365,544 households in South Dakota and national spending patterns by income.
How does South Dakota compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
South Dakota has 12.8 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $651K, 26% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, South Dakota would have about 348, against 469 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,406 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. The official count rose 19.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +11.4% for the U.S.
Which market in South Dakota has the highest market score for pet businesses?
Among 3 scored metro areas in or partly in South Dakota, the Sioux Falls metro area scores highest, at 70 (upper middle). Among 8 scored small-town markets in or partly in South Dakota, the Yankton area scores highest, at 57 (upper middle). Among 15 scored counties in South Dakota, Lincoln County scores highest, at 74 (upper middle). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. South Dakota scores 32 for pet businesses (lower middle), #41 of the 50 states and DC.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in South Dakota. It maps the pet businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
Pet businesses in other states
All 51 states
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- South Dakota
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Top markets for pet businesses across the U.S. · All business types in South Dakota
Related business types in South Dakota
- Veterinarians164 listings
- Pet grooming and boarding144 listings
- Pet stores77 listings
Screening a site or an acquisition in South Dakota?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.