Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Dakota instead of Wyoming, you would:
Economy
be 33.3% less likely to be unemployed
In Wyoming, 3.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In South Dakota, that number is 2.4% as of 2025.
Safety
be 81.3% more likely to be a victim of violent crime
Wyoming has a violent crime rate of 190 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In South Dakota, that number is 344 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Housing & Income
pay 16.9% less for a home
The median home value in Wyoming is $285,100 as of 2023, compared to $236,800 in South Dakota as of 2023.
Lifestyle
be 22.3% less likely to be uninsured
In Wyoming, 11.2% of the population is without health insurance as of 2023. In South Dakota, that number is 8.7% as of 2023.
be 25.0% less likely to be food insecure
In Wyoming, 10.4% of the population is food insecure as of 2021. In South Dakota, that number is 7.8% as of 2021.
live in an area that is 2.0 times more densely populated
Wyoming has a population density of 2.3 people per sq km as of 2023. In South Dakota, that number is 4.7 people per sq km as of 2023.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), OECD Regional Demography (2023), Feeding America (2021). How we calculate this
