Oct. 6, 2025
The unemployment rate for the Sioux Falls metro area jumped to 2.2 percent in August.
That’s up from 1.7 percent in July, which was the lowest rate for U.S. metros along with Rapid City.
For August, Rapid City’s rate also rose, but to 2.1 percent, giving it the No.1 spot, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
For the Sioux Falls metro area, which includes Minnehaha, Lincoln, McCook and Turner counties and Rock County in Minnesota, the 2.2 percent rate represents 3,814 unemployed people, according to the South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation. In July, the number of unemployed was 3,098.
The jobless rate, which is not seasonally adjusted and is preliminary, represents residents who do not have jobs, have actively looked for one in the past four weeks and are available to work. It also includes those who have been laid off temporarily.
The total labor force for the Sioux Falls MSA, those who are employed and unemployed, was 176,989 in August, a drop from 179,895 in July.
A year ago, the metro area jobless rate was 1.8 percent, with 3,174 unemployed people.
The labor supply, those who would be available to staff a new or expanding business, was estimated at 18,270 people in the metro area, up from 17,465 in July. That includes people who are not working and those who would like to change jobs.
The number of job openings in the Sioux Falls MSA dropped to 10,840 in August, according to the state’s virtual labor market data system. There were 11,014 open positions the previous month. A year ago, there were 12,581 openings.
Nonfarm wage and salaried worker levels in the Sioux Falls MSA rose by 100 people to 181,400 in August compared with the previous month. The largest increases at 1.3 percent were in government, a gain of 200 jobs, and the subcategory of transportation, warehousing and utilities, a gain of 100 jobs. The biggest percentage decline – 1.4 percent — was in the financial activities category with 200 fewer jobs.
Compared with a year ago, the overall nonfarm wage and salaried worker level in the MSA was down by 100 people.
South Dakota’s unemployment rate was unchanged from July to August at 1.9 percent, remaining as the lowest rate in the country.
The next-lowest rate was North Dakota at 2.5 percent. The District of Columbia had the highest unemployment rate at 6 percent, and the next-highest rate was in California at 5.5 percent.
South Dakota’s jobless rate, which is seasonally adjusted, represents 9,400 people who do not have jobs, have actively looked for one in the past four weeks and are available to work, along with those laid off temporarily, according to the state Labor Department. A year ago, the rate was 1.8 percent, and there were 9,000 unemployed South Dakotans.
In August, South Dakota’s labor force dropped by 600 people to 492,700 from the previous month. A year ago, it was 490,000.
The labor supply, those who would be available to staff a new or expanding business, was estimated at 52,805 people. That’s up from 50,200 in July and includes people who are not working and those who would like to change jobs.
The national unemployment rate rose to 4.3 percent from 4.2 percent the previous month. A year ago, it was 4.2 percent.