Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Rapid City earns a D, better than 14% of U.S. towns, mostly because of safety. Its crime rate is higher than 96% of U.S. towns, with 623 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. What it does well: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 71% of U.S. towns. 75% of working residents work locally in Rapid City, where South Dakota’s towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 8%. Its National Register listings include Rapid City Historic Commercial District and Dinosaur Park. Only 8 of South Dakota’s 84 towns score lower on cost of living.
Where Rapid City beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Emmanuel Episcopal Church
Its 31 National Register listings are more than in 92% of South Dakota towns with a listing.
Census counts: 939 in 1880, a low of 939 in 1880, 74,703 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1886 and 2 maps from 1953 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within South Dakota), ordered by how far Rapid City is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rapid City, 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 Rapid City.
Rapid City is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has colder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of South Dakota; it also reports violent crime at about twice the South Dakota rate.
Violent crime runs at 7.7 per 1,000 residents, about twice the South Dakota rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D−. Property crime runs at 36.4 per 1,000 residents, about twice the South Dakota rate, most of it theft.
The violent crime rate in Rapid City is 7.7 per 1,000 residents. No town among the 25 in South Dakota we compare has a higher property crime rate than Rapid City. Rapid City reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 96% report less.
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.7 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 36.4 per 1,000 residents | 9.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Rapid City Area School District 51-4. Three of its 33 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Middle School - 36Largest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 618 | C− |
| Central High School - 41Largest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,998 | B− |
| Stevens High School - 42Top results in townGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,771 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within SD on state tests and graduation
33 miles of trail in 40 parks and preserves. Sioux Park, at 466 acres with 1.6 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.5% | 3.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Robbinsdale Park | 1.8 mi | 105 |
| 2. Sioux Park | 1.6 mi | 466 |
| 3. The Outdoor Campus-West | 1.1 mi | 26 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 68% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 35 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Rapid City.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 13.7°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 98% of South Dakota places with climate records; July afternoons average 85.8°.
Rapid City has cold, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. Rapid City’s January low is 14°F. About 36 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 14°F | 9°F | 22°F |
| July high | 86°F | 85°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Since 2013, Rapid City has added 4,117 jobs, to 48,910 in 2023. 13% of residents live below the poverty line in Rapid City. The top destinations are Sioux Falls (4%), Box Elder (2%) and Spearfish (1%).
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 10% | 6.5% | 11% |
| Median household income | $71,000 | $72,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 10,589 U.S. towns with household incomes like Rapid City’s, it is healthier than 77%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income. Within South Dakota it is less healthy than 68% of the 35 graded towns: South Dakota sets a high bar.
Rapid City tracks South Dakota closely on all 26 CDC measures. 21% of Rapid City adults binge drink. Among 35 South Dakota towns, just 2 have a higher share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Rapid City.
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 19% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 30% | 36% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 12% | 14% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Rapid City home is worth about $361,000, up 1.9% in a year, 14% above the South Dakota typical home.
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 63% | 68% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 50% | 39% | 48% |
| Median rent | $1,109 a month | $958 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the South Dakota average. Rapid City has grown 7.8% since 2020, to 80,589 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 37% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across South Dakota.
| Rapid City | South Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 37% | 32% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 39.1 years | 39.6 years | 40.5 years |
49.1% women, 50.9% men
About 104 men for every 100 women. Across South Dakota, 49.2% of residents are women. Median age: women 40.2, men 37.5.
| Rapid City | SD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.1% | 13.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.9% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.1% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.4% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.9% | 10.7% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.9% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.6% | 11% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.1% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.5% | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.3% | 29% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.8% | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.4% | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 22.7% | 21.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.3% | 10% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Rapid City. Close and well known come first.
Big draw16 mi National MemorialMount Rushmore National Memorial1.9M visitors a year
Big draw26 mi LandmarkCrazy Horse Memorial
Big draw33 mi National ParkBadlands National Park1.1M visitors a year
21 mi MountainBlack Elk Peak
25 mi State parkCuster State Park
31 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
2 within 15 miles of the center of Rapid City
About 5 of every 100 Rapid City residents are enrolled in college, about the same as South Dakota.
2 colleges in town.
31 places in Rapid City on the National Register of Historic Places.
46 notable people were born in Rapid City.
City in South Dakota, United States
Rapid City is a city in and the county seat of Pennington County, South Dakota, United States. It is located on the eastern slope of the Black Hills in western South Dakota and was named after Rapid Creek, where the settlement developed. It is the second-most populous city in the state (after Sioux Falls) with a population of 74,703 as of the 2020 census. The Rapid City metropolitan area has 156,000 residents. Known as the "Gateway to the Black Hills" and the "City of Presidents" because of the life-size bronze president statues downtown, Rapid City is split by a low mountain ridge that divides the city's western and eastern parts, called ‘The Gap.’ Ellsworth Air Force Base is on the city's…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Rapid City.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D; Box Elder (C−) is closest.
| Town | SD rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rapid City | #35 | D | C | D− | C | B |
| Colonial Pine Hills | #28 | C+ | C | — | C | A |
| Rapid Valley | #20 | B− | B− | — | C | B+ |
| Box Elder | #34 | C− | D | C | B− | B+ |
Colonial Pine Hills and Rapid Valley report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Rapid City with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Rapid City grades D overall, better than 14% of U.S. towns. It grades B for health, D− for safety and C for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 4.8 years of the area's median household income ($75,255 across the Rapid City, 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 C.
46 notable people were born here, including Lawrence Lessig and Becky Hammon.
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