Most Dangerous Cities in South Dakota (2024)
The 13 most dangerous cities in South Dakota ranked by violent crime rate per 100,000 residents, based on 2024 FBI data.South Dakota has 58 cities reporting crime data.
Key Insights
- →Rapid City has the highest violent crime rate in South Dakota at 718.9 per 100K — 2.0x the national average.
- →3 of the top 25 most dangerous cities in South Dakota exceed the national average violent crime rate of 359.1/100K.
- →The top 3 — Rapid City, Sioux Falls, Pierre — account for a combined 1,763 violent crimes.
- →South Dakota's statewide violent crime rate is 362.3/100K, 1% above the national average.
718.9
Highest Rate
362.3
State Average
359.1
National Average
3
Above National Avg
Top 25 Most Dangerous Cities in South Dakota
Ranked by violent crime rate per 100,000 residents. Only cities with 10,000+ residents are included to avoid statistical distortion from tiny populations.
| # | City | Population | Violent Rate | Murder Rate | Property Rate | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rapid City | 80,957 | 718.9 | 6.2 | 3792.1 | F |
| 2 | Sioux Falls | 210,926 | 526.7 | 6.6 | 2915.2 | F |
| 3 | Pierre | 13,822 | 506.4 | 0.0 | 1989.6 | F |
| 4 | Box Elder | 14,589 | 349.6 | 6.8 | 1192.7 | D |
| 5 | Watertown | 23,417 | 303.2 | 0.0 | 1024.9 | D |
| 6 | Huron | 14,740 | 291.7 | 6.8 | 1512.9 | D |
| 7 | Yankton | 15,698 | 273.9 | 6.4 | 1968.4 | D |
| 8 | Aberdeen | 28,004 | 267.8 | 0.0 | 1410.5 | D |
| 9 | Spearfish | 13,657 | 263.6 | 0.0 | 1823.2 | D+ |
| 10 | Mitchell | 15,607 | 262.7 | 6.4 | 1967.1 | D+ |
| 11 | Vermillion | 12,110 | 181.7 | 0.0 | 1164.3 | C |
| 12 | Brookings | 24,638 | 85.2 | 0.0 | 1177.0 | B |
| 13 | Brandon | 10,935 | 73.2 | 0.0 | 374.9 | B |
Understanding the Data
Violent crime includes murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault as defined by the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program. Rates are per 100,000 residents and based on the latest 2024 data.
Why population matters: Cities under 10,000 are excluded from this ranking because a single incident can produce an extremely high per-capita rate. A city of 500 with one murder has a "murder rate" of 200/100K — statistically meaningless.
Not all crime is reported. FBI data only captures crimes reported to police. The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates only ~40% of violent crimes are reported. See our hidden crime estimates →