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Wounded Knee, SD (15340932)Photo: rlh · CC BY 2.0
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Wounded Knee

Wounded Knee draws 388 commuters a day, with 10.3 jobs for every working resident

There are 390 jobs in Wounded Knee, against 38 working residents. Only 5% work in Wounded Knee; the top destination outside it is Batesland (5%, 14 miles). The poverty rate is 100.0%, against 11.9% across South Dakota.

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

390 jobs based here
Household income
$2K
median · South Dakota $75K
Poverty
100.0%
South Dakota 11.9%
Unemployment
100.0%
South Dakota 2.9% · U.S. 5.2%
Work in town
5%
2 of 38 working residents
Day and night

The daily commute in and out of Wounded Knee

On a workday 36 residents head out to work and 2 work right here.

36live here, work elsewhere
2live and work here
388work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night520
Workday880
520live here− 36head out to work+ 390come in to work= 880on a workday

About 880 people are in Wounded Knee on a workday afternoon, 67% more than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
10.26jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

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 commute map

Where Wounded Knee’s workforce comes from

Gordon: 15 workers live here (4%)Rushville: 7 workers live here (2%)Chadron: 12 workers live here (3%)BismarckBateslandMelletteHot Springs: 6 workers live here (2%)Spearfish: 9 workers live here (2%)Box Elder: 12 workers live here (3%)Rapid City: 59 workers live here (15%)Wounded KneeKyle: 15 workers live here (4%)WanbleePine Ridge: 39 workers live here (10%)North Eagle ButtePorcupine: 7 workers live here (2%)OglalaRapid CityPine RidgeGordonKyleChadronBox ElderWounded Knee
1
Rapid City76.9 mi away
15%59
2
Pine Ridge12.3 mi away
10%39
3
Gordon, NE24.7 mi away
4%15
4
Kyle21.6 mi away
4%15
5
Chadron, NE38.8 mi away
3%12
6
Box Elder75.8 mi away
3%12
7
Spearfish117.8 mi away
2%9
8
Rushville, NE30.1 mi away
2%7
9
Porcupine8.8 mi away
2%7
10
Hot Springs58.5 mi away
2%6
Everywhere elseother towns and states
54%209
The top trips

Where Wounded Knee clocks in

5%Batesland
5% of workers
13.5 mi awayBatesland2 Wounded Knee residents work here · Jobs & commute →
5% of workers
12.3 mi awayPine Ridge2 Wounded Knee residents work here · Jobs & commute →
5%Porcupine
5% of workers
8.8 mi awayPorcupine2 Wounded Knee residents work here · Jobs & commute →

Lines 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.

The jobs

Mostly services: health care, schools and offices

Jobs based in Wounded KneeJobs Wounded Knee residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms0%3%
Trade, transport & utilities0%8%
Services: health, schools, offices100%89%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less2%13%
$1,251–$3,333 a month14%39%
Over $3,333 a month84%47%

Who does it

29 or younger10%16%
30 to 5462%53%
55 and older27%32%

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 Wounded Knee’s own residents hold wherever they work.

How far

How far Wounded Knee goes to work

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miBatesland: 5% · 13.5 miPine Ridge: 5% · 12.3 miPorcupine: 5% · 8.8 miBismarck: 3% · 265.4 miMellette: 3% · 236.8 miHot Springs: 3% · 58.5 miWanblee: 3% · 46.2 miNorth Eagle Butte: 3% · 141.5 miOglala: 3% · 17.5 miBatesland 5%Pine Ridge 5%Porcupine 5%Bismarck 3%Mellette 3%Wounded Knee
Wounded KneeTop destinations (size = commuters)
11%Under 10 mi4 residents
66%10–24 mi25 residents
11%25–50 mi4 residents
13%Over 50 mi5 residents

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.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Wounded Knee: questions

What is the median household income in Wounded Knee?

$2,499 (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Wounded Knee?

100.0%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

Where do people who live in Wounded Knee work?

5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Batesland (5%, 14 mi), Pine Ridge (5%, 12 mi), Porcupine (5%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Wounded Knee, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Wounded Knee

Wounded Knee home →
HandbookGetting around Wounded KneeRoads, buses, parking and the basics
shortest commutes
RankingsTop towns in SDShortest commutes, work from home & more

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.