Minnehaha County, South Dakota


Minnehaha County is a county on the eastern border of the state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 197,214, making it the state's most populous county, and was estimated to be 208,639 in 2024. It contains over 22.56% of the state's population. Its county seat is Sioux Falls, South Dakota's most populous city. The county was created on April 5, 1862 and organized in 1868. Its name was derived from the Sioux word Mnihaha, meaning "rapid water," or "waterfall".
Minnehaha County is part of the Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, the state's largest.

Geography

Minnehaha County lies on the east side of South Dakota. Its eastern boundary abuts Minnesota as well as the northern and western boundaries of Iowa. The Sioux River">Sioux language">Sioux River flows south-southeast through the east central part of the county. Its terrain consists of rolling hills, devoted to agriculture except around built-up areas, and dotted with lakes and ponds in its western portion. Its terrain generally slopes southward, and the east and west edges slope to the river valley through the center of the county. Its highest point is in the northwest corner, at ASL.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the 13th largest county in South Dakota by total area.

Major highways

Source:
Minnehaha County, South Dakota – racial and ethnic composition
Race / ethnicity Pop. 1980Pop. 1990Pop. 2000Pop. 2010
White alone 107,032
120,047
136,632
146,159
155,740
Black or African American alone 268
739
2,217
6,326
11,411
Native American or Alaska Native alone 1,118
1,645
2,678
3,933
4,807
Asian alone 345
689
1,480
2,489
4,568
Pacific Islander alone ——55
76
71
Race and ethnicity in [the United States census|Other race] alone 204
41
98
189
554
Mixed race or multiracial ——1,934
3,314
8,029
Hispanic or Latino 468
648
3,187
6,982
12,034
Total109,435
123,809
148,281
169,468
197,214

Recent estimates

As of the third quarter of 2024, the median home value in Minnehaha County was $305,100.
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 82,394 estimated households in Minnehaha County with an average of 2.37 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $76,074. Approximately 9.7% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Minnehaha County has an estimated 74.2% employment rate, with 34.6% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 93.1% holding a high school diploma.
The top five reported ancestries were English, Spanish, Indo-European, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Other.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 197,214 people, 78,715 households, and 48,690 families residing in the county.
Of the residents, 25.0% were under the age of 18 and 14.6% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 35.9 years. For every 100 females there were 101.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.2 males. The population density was. There were 83,717 housing units at an average density of. Of those units, 6.0% were vacant, 62.5% of occupied units were owner-occupied, and 37.5% were renter-occupied; the homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.3%.
The racial makeup of the county was 80.3% White, 5.8% Black or African American, 2.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.3% Asian, 2.9% from some other race, and 5.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.1% of the population.
Of the 78,715 households, 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 25.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present, 30.4% were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 169,468 people, 67,028 households, and 42,052 families in the county. The population density was. There were 71,557 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 88.05% White, 3.78% American (U.S. census)|African American], 2.48% Native American, 1.48% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 1.84% from some other races and 2.29% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 4.12% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 43.8% were German, 17.7% were Norwegian, 11.6% were Irish, 6.8% were Dutch, 6.3% were English, and 3.2% were American.
Of the 67,028 households, 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.7% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.3% were non-families, and 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.03. The median age was 34.5 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $51,799 and the median income for a family was $64,645. Males had a median income of $40,187 versus $31,517 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,392. About 6.9% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Minnehaha is somewhat conservative for an urban county. Only four Democratic presidential candidates in five different elections have carried the county since 1940, and in only two of those elections the Democrat obtained a majority of the county's vote.
In the South Dakota Legislature, Sioux Falls falls into Districts 9-15, with each district electing two Representatives and one Senator. Only two out of seven districts are represented by Democrats.

Communities

Cities

Source:
School districts in the county include:
Various rural schools operated in the county's history.