States · South Dakota · Pennington County

Rapid Valley, South Dakota.

A community in Pennington County, with no city government of its own. Zillow publishes no home prices for it: see Pennington County’s.

Living in Rapid Valley, Pennington County, South Dakota

Rapid Valley, in Pennington County, had 8,098 people in the 2020 census. Half its households earn more than $83,208 a year and half less, against $74,517 across Pennington County; 4% of its people live below the poverty line. 92% of its homes are lived in by their owners and 8% are rented. Unemployment in Pennington County was 2.1% in August 2026, and the county had 0.5% more jobs in 2025 than the year before. The most residents work in schools and health care, then shops.

People 8,098 in the 2020 census; median age 43.2
Household income $83,208 the median, give or take $12,390 · Pennington County: $74,517
Unemployment 2.1% Pennington County, August 2026; 2.1% a year before
Homes 92% lived in by their owners; 8% rented
  • 3,170households
  • 20%of adults have a degree
  • 4%below the poverty line
  • 20 mintypical commute
  • 9%work from home

What residents work in

  • Schools, hospitals and social care20%
  • Shops (retail)12%
  • Manufacturing9%
  • Building trades9%
  • Transport, warehouses and utilities9%
  • Other services8%

Employed residents by industry, from the Census survey. Pennington County had 62,445 jobs in 2025, 0.5% more than the year before (Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Weather through the year

Average daily high and low for each month: coldest in January, 36° and 13°; warmest in July, 86° and 58° 20° 40° 60° 80° J 36° 13° F M A M J J 86° 58° A S O N D
Average daily high and low for each month: coldest in January, 36° and 13°; warmest in July, 86° and 58° 20° 40° 60° 80° J 36° 13° F M A M J J 86° 58° A S O N D

Coldest in January, with highs near 36° and lows near 13°; warmest in July, with highs near 86° and lows near 58°. About 48 inches of snow and 17 inches of rain and melted snow a year.

Average daily high and low, 1991–2020, at the Rapid City Regional Airport weather station, 4 miles away (NOAA).

Largest workplaces in Pennington County

  1. Monument Health Rapid City HospitalGeneral hospital2,921FTE
  2. Rapid City Area School District 51-4School district1,574FTE
  3. Quanta ServicesPower and communication line and related structures construction572
  4. WalmartWarehouse clubs and supercenters530
  5. WalmartWarehouse clubs and supercenters467
  6. South Dakota School of Mines and TechnologyUniversity or college458
  7. Douglas School District 51-1School district390FTE
  8. Menards"all other miscellaneous wood product manufacturing"376

Staff on average in 2025, as each workplace reported it to OSHA with its injury records: 126 workplaces with 20 or more staff, 13,099 people in all across the county; Rapid Valley has none of its own. Hospitals come from their Medicare cost reports (CMS, 2023), school districts from the Common Core of Data (NCES, 2023–24) and colleges from IPEDS (NCES, 2023–24); FTE marks full-time equivalent staff. Not listed: many offices and banks, which need not report to OSHA; military bases, whose staff OPM withholds; and, in about half the states, city and county governments.

Natural hazards

  1. LightningVery high
  2. Winter weatherRelatively high
  3. HailRelatively high
  4. WildfireRelatively high
  5. Cold wavesRelatively high
  6. Ice stormsRelatively moderate

FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the risk each natural hazard poses to the people, buildings and farms in Rapid Valley’s census tracts, against the rest of the country; all of them together, relatively low. It is meant for planning, not a substitute for a local risk assessment or a flood map: FEMA’s index.

From the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 census and its American Community Survey (2020–2024 five-year estimates), and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A survey, so each figure has a margin of error, and figures it is not sure of are left out. More on Pennington County.