Almost no one in North Spearfish’s labor force is looking for work
23.2% of residents live below the poverty line, against 11.9% across South Dakota. Jobs and income earn North Spearfish C+; getting around on foot earns it D. The average commute, 18 minutes each way, matches the South Dakota norm.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in North Spearfish
North Spearfish and Spearfish trade workers both ways
Spearfish is the top workplace for North Spearfish residents (46%) and also where the most people who work in North Spearfish come from (36% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
North Spearfish makes and builds things
49% of the jobs based in North Spearfish are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs North Spearfish residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 17%. The jobs ↓
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.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in North Spearfish
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, North Spearfish is better than 45% of U.S. towns. Unemployment holds North Spearfish’s grade up (hardly any, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate pulls it down. It also does well on household income.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, North Spearfish could be anywhere from C to A−.
46% of working residents work in Spearfish
Where North Spearfish clocks in
46% of workers
10% 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.
Goods jobs make up 49% of work in North Spearfish
456 jobs are based in North Spearfish.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in North Spearfish, 2013 → 2023: 181 → 456. 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 Spearfish’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How a workday changes North Spearfish
On a workday 1,033 residents head out to work, 43 work right here, and 413 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,200 people are in North Spearfish on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
0.42 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute 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.
Getting to work from North Spearfish takes about 18 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Spearfish workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 959 commuters (the 6% 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.
North Spearfish’s commute, mile by mile
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 of North Spearfish commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, North Spearfish is more walkable than 14% 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 1,022 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). 0.0% of North Spearfish households have no vehicle (South Dakota 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of North Spearfish’s commuters take a bus or train.
North Spearfish places 2,502nd of 5,656 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 1,300 to 2,500
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Plandome NY | 1,482 | $250K | 0.9% | 1.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 78 | Delapre Township SD | 2,053 | $141K | 1.2% | 0.0% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 110 | Springdale Township SD | 2,229 | $151K | 1.3% | 0.2% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 254 | Mapleton Township SD | 2,063 | $111K | 2.4% | 2.7% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,500 | Inverness CA | 1,346 | $80K | 4.8% | 10.0% | 10% | C+ |
| 2,501 | Bourg LA | 2,239 | $69K | 10.4% | 4.0% | 2% | C+ |
| 2,502 | North Spearfish SD | 1,858 | $77K | 23.2% | 0.0% | 4% | C+ |
| 2,503 | Woodstock AL | 1,653 | $73K | 14.1% | 7.3% | 4% | C+ |
| 2,504 | Freedom NY | 2,196 | $74K | 7.0% | 3.3% | 9% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5,656 | Paraje NM | 1,333 | $33K | 61.7% | 0.0% | 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 Spearfish, the top three, the last and three more from South Dakota.
Bordering towns draw 46% of North Spearfish’s workers
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | North Spearfish workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Spearfish | – | C+ | D | 18 min | $76,809 |
| Spearfish | 46% | C+ | A | 16 min | $65,688 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Spearfish. Darker towns draw more of North Spearfish’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 Spearfish: questions
What is the median household income in North Spearfish?
$76,809 (±$20,031) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Spearfish?
23.2%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Spearfish?
18 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in North Spearfish work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Spearfish (46%, 5 mi), Rapid City (10%, 46 mi), Deadwood (5%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is North Spearfish walkable?
North Spearfish is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 6.0 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Spearfish without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Spearfish, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Spearfish
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.