Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,609.
Colonial Pine Hills grades C+ overall, 28th among South Dakota's 35 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Residents are healthier than 94% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On the other side, FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 71% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. 22% of the land in Colonial Pine Hills is conserved, where South Dakota’s towns sit at 3.2% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Colonial Pine Hills has 2 places on the National Register.
Where Colonial Pine Hills beats most towns.
2,493 counted in 2010 and 1,903 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Dakota), ordered by how far Colonial Pine Hills is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,553 in 1990, a peak of 2,561 in 2000, 1,903 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2016 and 2 maps from 1953 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Colonial Pine Hills. Close and well known come first.
Big draw10 mi National MemorialMount Rushmore National Memorial1.9M visitors a year
Big draw20 mi LandmarkCrazy Horse Memorial
Big draw33 mi National ParkBadlands National Park1.1M visitors a year
15 mi MountainBlack Elk Peak
19 mi State parkCuster State Park
27 mi National ParkWind Cave National Park606K visitors a yearMount Rushmore National Memorial: Thomas Wolf, www.foto-tw.de, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Crazy Horse Memorial: Jeffreylcooke, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Badlands National Park: Martin Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Black Elk Peak: BHrock at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Custer State Park: Guimir, Public domain · Wind Cave National Park: USGS/USGov, Public domain
Colonial Pine Hills is unincorporated, so Pennington County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Colonial Pine Hills.
Colonial Pine Hills is among the three healthiest towns in South Dakota, sends most of its workers to Rapid City and beyond and has colder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of South Dakota.
It ranks #2 of the 35 South Dakota towns we grade on the CDC estimates behind the Health Grade. Its widest gap with South Dakota is tooth loss: 5% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 12.7% statewide.
11% of adults report frequent mental distress in Colonial Pine Hills, below both South Dakota’s towns (15%) and U.S. towns (17%). 10% of Colonial Pine Hills adults report frequent physical distress. Among 35 South Dakota towns, just 2 have a lower share of adults who say their health is fair or poor than Colonial Pine Hills.
| Colonial Pine Hills | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 15% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 22% | 25% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.7% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Colonial Pine Hills | SD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5% | 12.7% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 4.5% | 8.8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.2% | 9.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Colonial Pine Hills has 156 jobs for its 748 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
0.9% of working residents work locally in Colonial Pine Hills. Since 2013, Colonial Pine Hills has added 20 jobs, to 156 in 2023. 0.2% of residents live below the poverty line in Colonial Pine Hills.
| Colonial Pine Hills | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 0.9% | 31% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 0.2% | 9.6% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $99,000 | $71,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Adults 18 to 34 are 9% of residents (22% statewide); people 65 and older are 30% of residents (18% statewide). The median age in Colonial Pine Hills is 59.5 years. 31% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across South Dakota.
| Colonial Pine Hills | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 59.5 years | 39.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 31% | 34% | 29% |
42% women, 58% men
About 140 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±4.8 points). Across South Dakota, 49.2% of residents are women.
| Colonial Pine Hills | SD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.1% | 13.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.6% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 6.1% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7.4% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.4% | 10.7% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 26.1% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 24.8% | 11% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.6% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 1.5% | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 22.7% | 29% | 26% |
| Some college | 30.8% | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 14.5% | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.2% | 21.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11.3% | 10% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,600, single groups can be off by several points
6.7 miles of trail in 0 parks and preserves.
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 13.8°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 98% of South Dakota places with climate records; July afternoons average 84.1°.
Colonial Pine Hills has cold, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. Colonial Pine Hills’ January low is 14°F. About 36 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Colonial Pine Hills | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 14°F | 9°F | 22°F |
| July high | 84°F | 85°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median property tax bill is $4,653, against $2,724 across South Dakota, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
No town among the 35 in South Dakota we compare has a higher share of households owning their home than Colonial Pine Hills.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
2 within 15 miles of the center of Colonial Pine Hills
About 1 of every 100 Colonial Pine Hills residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across South Dakota.
Where Colonial Pine Hills’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
CDP in South Dakota, United States
Colonial Pine Hills is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Pennington County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,903 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Colonial Pine Hills.
| Town | SD rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colonial Pine Hills | #28 | C+ | C | — | C | A |
| Rapid City | #35 | D | C | D− | C | B |
Colonial Pine Hills reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Colonial Pine Hills with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Colonial Pine Hills grades C+ overall, better than 42% of U.S. towns and #28 of 35 in South Dakota. It grades A for health and C for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
The typical home is worth about $407,000, 28% above the South Dakota typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
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