Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Elk Point’s subject grades are an A− for safety and health and an A+ for civic life. On safety, just 2 of South Dakota’s 29 towns do better. Only 1 of South Dakota’s 85 towns score lower on the outdoors. Charles Murtha House and Brick Yard is on the National Register of Historic Places. On civic life, just 6 of South Dakota’s 73 towns do better. Elk Point has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Elk Point beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Dakota), ordered by how far Elk Point is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,081 in 1900, 2,149 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and a map from 1963 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Elk Point, and how to reach them.
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 Elk Point.
Elk Point’s violent crime rate is 0 per 1,000 residents, against 1.9 in South Dakota’s towns and 1.6 across U.S. towns. Elk Point’s property crime rate is 4.4 per 1,000 residents. Elk Point reports less crime per resident than 79% of the U.S. towns and cities we grade.
| Elk Point | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.4 per 1,000 residents | 9.8 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Elk Point-Jefferson School District 61-7. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elk Point-Jefferson Elementary - 02Largest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 334 | C+ |
| Elk Point-Jefferson High School - 01Largest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 212 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SD on state tests and graduation
Elk Point tracks South Dakota closely on all 26 CDC measures. 75% of adults had a checkup this year in Elk Point, below both South Dakota’s towns (76%) and U.S. towns (79%). 33% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Elk Point.
| Elk Point | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 75% | 76% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 30% | 36% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 19% | 16% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 35% | 35% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Elk Point has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 10° and about 36 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 5 of Elk Point’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Elk Point is 21 minutes. Jobs based in Elk Point fell to 709 in 2023, 60 fewer than in 2013.
| Elk Point | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 22% | 29% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $90,000 | $72,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 7.9% | 6.6% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Children under 18 are 30% of residents (24% statewide). Among 36 South Dakota towns, just 3 have a higher share of children under 18 than Elk Point. Elk Point has lost 3.1% of its people since 2020, down to 2,080 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Elk Point | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 30% | 22% | 22% |
| Median age | 35.5 years | 39.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 18% | 19% | 18% |
47% women, 53% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.4 points. Across South Dakota, 49.2% of residents are women.
| Elk Point | SD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.9% | 13.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 15.6% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.9% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.9% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.1% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.7% | 10.7% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 7.2% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.1% | 11% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.7% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.7% | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.7% | 29% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.4% | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 16.7% | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20.1% | 21.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 9.3% | 10% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,100, single groups can be off by several points
The typical Elk Point home is worth about $291,000, up 3.6% in a year, 9% below the South Dakota typical home. 78% of Elk Point households own their home.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 55% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Elk Point
About 2 of every 100 Elk Point residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across South Dakota.
City in South Dakota, United States
Elk Point is a city in and the county seat of Union County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 2,149 as of the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
That is 3.9 years of the area's median household income ($75,192 across the Sioux City, IA-NE-SD metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
2 notable people were born here, including Chuck Tollefson and Harry Webber.
