What it's like to live in Yankton
Yankton is a small city in South Dakota with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, county unemployment below the national average, and crime rates well below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Yankton deals with household incomes below the national average, cold, harsh winters, snowy winters, and fewer dining and entertainment options than a bigger city.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low unemployment in the county
- Low crime rates
- Short commutes
- Average class sizes
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Cold, harsh winters
- Snowy winters — 38" per year
- Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
How Yankton compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Yankton
Based on Yankton's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,580
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $31,600 a year
- 35% of Yankton renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$44,540
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $22,270
- Homes cost 3.3× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 44% below US
$790/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $790 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $222,700. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $222,700 · 35% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
1.9% county unemployment
Unemployment in Yankton County is 1.9%, well below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Yankton County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 42% below US
191 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 1456/100k · Yankton Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 49% below US
13 min average commute
Commutes run short here, averaging 13.3 minutes. That's an underrated perk of living in a smaller or well-planned city, where time isn't lost sitting in traffic. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 6% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 85°F, and winters are cold and harsh, with lows dropping to 13°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
2 hospitals
There are 2 Medicare-certified hospitals inside city limits. They average 3.0 out of 5 on Medicare's star rating.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforceNear US average
33% bachelor's degree or higher
Education levels run about average, with 33% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.
Schools
6 public schools inside the boundary
There are 6 public schools inside the boundary and 3 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 17:1, close to the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Missouri National Recreational River (12 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Yankton's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and cold, harsh winters. A year of median rent ($790/mo) equals 14% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, job seekers (county-wide unemployment is low), and anyone prioritizing low crime. It may be a harder fit for anyone who dislikes long, cold winters.
Other places near Yankton
All South Dakota guides →Not sure Yankton is the one?
Put it side by side with another city.