Pets · Small-town market · South Dakota
Pet businesses in the Brookings, SD area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for pet businesses in the Brookings, SD area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 48 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #308 of 527 scored small-town markets
#4 of 8 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota
- Listings
- 19
- 1 chain location (5%)
- Official establishments
- 13
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $11.2M
- On pets · $811 a household
- Spending per listing
- $589K
- 33% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.8
- 33% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 37,635
- +9.6% since 2020
See the pet businesses around any address in the Brookings area
The site report maps the pet businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Brookings area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
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
At $811 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in the Brookings area spend about $11.2M a year on pets. Spread across 19 pet businesses, that is $589K per business, 33% below the U.S. figure of $878K.
There are 19 pet businesses on map listings in the Brookings area as of September 2026. One of them (5%) is a chain location, against 17% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 13.8, 33% above the U.S. rate of 10.4.
In 2023, official counts showed 13 businesses with payroll in the Brookings area classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores. That is one for every 1,061 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S. Official counts also show 14 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $400K has gone to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Brookings area.
Population estimates show the Brookings area grew 9.6% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For pet businesses, the Brookings area has a Groundwork market score of 48 (lower middle): #308 of 527 scored small-town markets and #4 of 8 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota.
How the Brookings area compares
The same measures for South Dakota and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all pets by the pet businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Brookings area | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.8 | 12.8 | 10.4 |
| Spending per listing | $589K | $651K | $878K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,061 | 1,406 | 1,852 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +19.3% | +11.4% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +9.6% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on pets | $811 | $835 | $909 |
| Median household income | $70,064 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 48 | 32 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 13
- Employees, 2023
- 68
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 14Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 191 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 13The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $400K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in the Brookings area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Brookings area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 37,635+9.6% since 2020
- Households
- 13,798
- Median age
- 31.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 57%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 792 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 45
- Median household income
- $70,064+20.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $89,400
- Median home value
- $264,600
- Jobs located here
- 19,000
- Daytime population
- 37,385Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Brookings area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the pet businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Brookings area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardPet businesses across South Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Dakota for pet businesses, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with the Brookings area marked.
Top small-town markets in South Dakota
| 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 |
Other business types in the Brookings area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Pets
- Pet businesses48
- Veterinarians38
- Pet grooming and boarding57
- Pet stores
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many pet businesses are in the Brookings, SD area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 19 pet businesses in the Brookings area. One of them (5%) is a chain location. The listings count vets, groomers, boarding and pet stores. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as pet care, veterinarians and pet stores in 2023. Another 14 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Brookings, SD area spend on pets?
About $11.2M a year, or $811 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 19 pet businesses on map listings, it comes to $589K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,798 households in the Brookings area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Brookings, SD area compare with the U.S. for pet businesses?
The Brookings area has 13.8 pet businesses per 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 10.4. Spending per business is $589K, 33% below the U.S. figure of $878K. At the U.S. ratio of pet businesses to household spending, the Brookings area would have about 13, against 19 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,061 households, against one for every 1,852 across the U.S.
How fast is the Brookings, SD area growing?
Population estimates put the Brookings area at 37,635 people in 2025, up 9.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 13,798 households. Median household income in the Brookings area is $70,064, 13% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 20.5%, before inflation.
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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Brookings area scores 48 for pet businesses (lower middle), #308 of 527 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Brookings area. 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.
How the score works · Top markets for pet businesses · All 56 business types in the Brookings area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Brookings area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Brookings area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
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.