"People who live in rural areas are more likely to own their own homes, live in their state of birth and have served in the military than their urban counterparts, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey."
The release features data collected between 2011 and 2015 on more than 40 demographic, housing, social and economic topics, including commuting, educational attainment and home value. By pooling multiple years of data, the American Community Survey is able to produce a rolling sample of estimates for cities, towns, counties and other geographies, regardless of their population size.
The Census Bureau's national news release on the data features an analysis of differences between rural and urban populations. To see the Census Bureau's national news release on the data, click here. See infographic for more information. This is the kind of analysis for which the ACS 5-year estimates are uniquely qualified, as it gathers data from every county in the U.S. and can produce meaningful statistics by pooling multiple years of data. These statistics are available to explore on the Census Bureau American FactFinder.
The State Data Center compiled rural-urban comparisons in South Dakota:
There were 42.9 percent of the state population living in rural areas. The national estimate is 19.3 percent.
The median age of people who live in rural areas is older than that of the urban population (42 compared with 34).
Native Americans comprise 13.0 percent of the rural population while in urban areas the share is 5.3 percent.
Rural communities had fewer adults born in other countries compared with those in urban areas (1.4 percent compared with 4.2 percent).
People living in rural areas are more likely to own their own homes than their urban counterparts (78.1 percent compared with 60.9 percent), but less likely to have obtained a bachelor's degree or higher (23.8 percent compared with 29.5 percent).
The labor force participation rate is lower in the rural population aged 16 and over (65.9 percent compared with 71.4 percent).
People who live in rural areas are more likely to work in industries related to agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting and mining than their urban counterparts. Click here to see a detailed table of comparison.
More people in rural areas are uninsured (11.6 percent compared to 10.6 percent), especially the group aged 19 to 25 (29.7 percent compared with 17.7 percent).
People living in rural and urban areas have similar rates of poverty (about 14 percent).
Compared with households in urban areas, rural households had high median household income ($54,090 compared with $48,695), higher median home values ($158,100 compared with $155,300), and higher monthly housing costs for households paying a mortgage ($1,216 compared with $1,207).
To explore more comparisons of rural and urban populations in South Dakota, click demographic comparisons, housing comparisons, economic comparisons, and social characteristics comparisons.
New: For the first time, the 5-year dataset includes "Comparison Profile" tables. These data compare differences between the latest set of American Community Survey 5-year statistics (2011-2015) and the most recent, nonoverlapping five-year dataset (2006-2010). The tables note statistically significant differences. The comparisons are made for populations of 5,000 or more.
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To see the South Dakota State and place comparison profiles of the two reference periods tabulated by the Data Center, click Demographic Data, Housing Data, Economic Data.
This is the second set of American Community Survey data released this year. The first, in September produced estimates based on data collected in 2015 for areas with populations of 65,000 or more. For South Dakota, the 2015 ACS 1-Year Estimates are available for the State, Minnehaha County, and Pennington County. Summary reports of median household income can be extracted and downloaded: South Dakota, Minnehaha County, and Pennington County.
To learn more about the American Community Survey - how it works and what it's used for, you can also visit us at http://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/ . To learn how to tabulate comparisons for Rural-Urban components or the two reference periods of 2006-2010 and 2010-2015, contact Dr. Weiwei Zhang at the State Data Center. Email: Weiwei.Zhang@sdstate.edu ; Office: 605-688-4901
