Laurens Polygonal Hog House · Photo: JERRYE AND ROY KLOTZ MD · CC BY-SA 3.0North Eagle Butte’s household incomes are lower than in 98% of U.S. towns
A typical one-way commute lasts 12 minutes, next to 18 for South Dakota and 26 for the U.S. Poverty touches 52.6% of residents; South Dakota has 11.9%. Jobs and income earn North Eagle Butte D−; getting around on foot earns it C−.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
North Eagle Butte at work: what stands out
Jobs in North Eagle Butte have more than doubled in ten years
Jobs based in North Eagle Butte went from 382 in 2013 to 947 in 2023, +148%. The jobs ↓
North Eagle Butte is where the jobs are
North Eagle Butte has 947 jobs, 2.3 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
North Eagle Butte and Eagle Butte trade workers both ways
Eagle Butte is the top workplace for North Eagle Butte residents (21%) and also where the most people who work in North Eagle Butte come from (12% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 412 working residents, small shifts move the shares; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
The four measures behind North Eagle Butte’s grade
On income, poverty and job access, North Eagle Butte is near the bottom of U.S. towns. All three inputs sit close together, so no single one decides North Eagle Butte’s grade.
Unemployment (27.5%) is left out: North Eagle Butte’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income and poverty, North Eagle Butte stays D−.
In North Eagle Butte, services account for most jobs
947 jobs are based in North Eagle Butte.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in North Eagle Butte, 2013 → 2023: 382 → 947. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs North Eagle Butte’s own residents hold wherever they work.
North Eagle Butte on a workday afternoon
On a workday 194 residents head out to work, 218 work right here, and 729 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in North Eagle Butte on a workday afternoon, 36% more than live here.
2.3 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
The towns that send workers to North Eagle Butte
Where North Eagle Butte clocks in
21% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
About 12 minutes to work from North Eagle Butte
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 3.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Eagle Butte workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 326 commuters (the 8% who work from home are left out). Across South Dakota: 85% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
How many miles North Eagle Butte commutes
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Most trips from North Eagle Butte start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, North Eagle Butte is more walkable than 17% of U.S. towns. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 4.3% across South Dakota.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 356 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 31.7% of North Eagle Butte households have no vehicle (South Dakota 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of North Eagle Butte’s commuters take a bus or train.
How North Eagle Butte compares with U.S. towns of 1,000 to 2,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 186 | Wall Lake Township SD | 1,210 | $129K | 0.0% | 0.0% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 244 | Jefferson Township SD | 1,207 | $196K | 2.0% | 3.6% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 250 | Crooks SD | 1,415 | $99K | 0.5% | 1.4% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 6,279 | Bodfish CA | 1,694 | $40K | 31.5% | 17.3% | 3% | D− |
| 6,280 | Douglas City CA | 1,060 | $32K | 28.5% | 2.0% | 1% | D− |
| 6,281 | North Eagle Butte SD | 1,481 | $34K | 52.6% | 27.5% | 53% | D− |
| 6,282 | Siesta Shores TX | 1,640 | $35K | 48.8% | 8.2% | 1% | D− |
| 6,283 | Vanceburg KY | 1,386 | $30K | 39.6% | 8.4% | 27% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 6,308 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of North Eagle Butte, the top three, the last and three more from South Dakota.
North Eagle Butte and its neighbors: 21% work next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | North Eagle Butte workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Eagle Butte | – | D− | C− | 12 min | $34,358 |
| Eagle Butte | 21% | D− | D | 10 min | $45,741 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Eagle Butte. Darker towns draw more of North Eagle Butte’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in North Eagle Butte: questions
What is the median household income in North Eagle Butte?
$34,358 (±$4,993) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Eagle Butte?
52.6%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Eagle Butte?
12 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in North Eagle Butte work?
53% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Eagle Butte (21%, 2 mi), Timber Lake (4%, 29 mi), Isabel (2%, 28 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is North Eagle Butte walkable?
North Eagle Butte is more walkable than 17% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 6.4 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Eagle Butte without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 32% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Eagle Butte, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Eagle Butte
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.