Loading
Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
The numbers are clear: 1 of 1 cities in South Dakota beat the national cost-of-living benchmark of 111. Sioux Falls stands out at 74 on the index, with rent of $1,265/month and household income of $74,714. Assembled from 2026 Census, Zillow, and BLS data.
#1 Ranked: Sioux Falls — cost index 74, rent $1,265/mo, income $74,714
1 of 1 cities come in below the national cost-of-living average of 111
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
The numbers are clear: 1 of 1 cities in South Dakota beat the national cost-of-living benchmark of 111. Sioux Falls stands out at 74 on the index, with rent of $1,265/month and household income of $74,714. Assembled from 2026 Census, Zillow, and BLS data.
Here's Sioux Falls by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 74. Rent: $1,265/month. Income: $74,714/year. Home price: $326,187. Population: 206,410. The strongest category is Housing at 74; the most expensive is Healthcare at 95. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $7,560 per year vs. the national median. For anyone running the numbers, this is where it clicks.
Rent data is sourced from Zillow's Observed Rent Index (ZORI), which tracks the median rent across all active listings — not just new leases. This gives a more representative and stable signal than asking prices alone. Sioux Falls: $1,265/mo. The cheapest city here is $630 under the national median — that's $7,560/year in savings on rent alone (more on that below).
The other side of the coin: The 1 cities we track in South Dakota paint a clearly affordable picture. Average cost index: 74. Median rent: $1,265/month. Household income: $74,714. South Dakota is known for no income tax and Great Plains affordability — and the data backs that reputation convincingly.
What to do with this data: use the ranking as a shortlist, then dig into the city profiles for trend lines and category breakdowns. And in practical terms, the difference between #1 and #5 is often smaller than the difference between "good on paper" and "actually fits my life." Compare your top picks with our calculator to see real take-home numbers (that's pre-tax, of course).
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sioux Falls | 74 | $1,265 | Details |
206,410 residents · South Dakota
Frankly, Here's Sioux Falls by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 74. Rent: $1,265/month. Income: $74,714/year. Home price: $326,187. Population: 206,410. The strongest category is Housing at 74; the most expensive is Healthcare at 95. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $7,560 per year vs. the national median. From a pure purchasing-power standpoint, this is elite.
Sioux Falls ranks #1 in South Dakota for this analysis with a cost index of 74 and median income of $74,714.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Sioux Falls is $1,265/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $630 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Sioux Falls is $326,187, which is 4.4× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
South Dakota has a 0% state income tax rate — one of the states with no income tax. Combined state and local sales tax averages 6.1%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.08%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.