Custer, South Dakota demographics
Custer, SD demographics: median age 51.2; 26.1% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree. Age, race, households, languages and education, ACS 2020–2024 with margins of error.
ACS 2020–2024 · Custer city, South Dakota · Incorporated city · GEOID 4615140. The survey estimates a population of 2,341 for its five-year window. This is separate from the annual July 2025 population estimate on the city overview.
Median age in Custer is 51.2 years, with a 90% margin of error of 10.5 years. There are 1,169 households (±166). Age and household distributions show how these totals are composed; they do not establish which neighborhood suits a particular person.
Age distribution and sex
| Measure / survey universe | City estimate ± MOE | State estimate ± MOE | U.S. estimate ± MOE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age Total population · years | 51.2 ±10.5 | 38.0 ±0.2 | 38.9 ±0.1 |
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 314 ±92 | 13.4% ±3.5 pp | 24.2% | 22.0% |
| 18–34 | 521 ±147 | 22.3% ±5.5 pp | 21.9% | 22.8% |
| 35–64 | 694 ±149 | 29.6% ±4.9 pp | 35.9% | 38.0% |
| 65 and older | 812 ±153 | 34.7% ±4.4 pp | 18.0% | 17.2% |
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 1,049 ±179 | 44.8% ±4.5 pp | 50.8% | 49.5% |
| Female | 1,292 ±206 | 55.2% ±4.4 pp | 49.2% | 50.5% |
The age groups are mutually exclusive and cover the entire population. The sex categories follow this ACS table’s published classification; they are not a survey of gender identity.
Race and Hispanic origin
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone | 2,051 ±291 | 87.6% ±2.9 pp | 80.7% | 61.0% |
| Black or African American alone | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 2.3% | 12.2% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone | 76 ±79 · low precision | 3.2% ±3.3 pp · low precision | 7.5% | 0.9% |
| Asian alone | 29 ±38 · low precision | 1.2% ±1.6 pp · low precision | 1.4% | 6.0% |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Some other race alone | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 1.6% | 7.1% |
| Two or more races | 185 ±118 · low precision | 7.9% ±4.9 pp · low precision | 6.5% | 12.6% |
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not Hispanic or Latino | 2,289 ±312 | 97.8% ±19.0 pp | 95.2% | 80.7% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 52 ±64 · low precision | 2.2% ±2.7 pp · low precision | 4.8% | 19.3% |
Hispanic origin and race are separate questions. People of Hispanic or Latino origin may be of any race and appear in both tables. Do not add the Hispanic share to race shares. Race alone and two-or-more-race groups are the mutually exclusive categories of the race table.
Household types, children and living alone
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Married-couple family | 556 ±126 | 47.6% ±8.4 pp | 48.3% | 46.9% |
| Other family: male householder, no spouse present | 106 ±78 · low precision | 9.1% ±6.5 pp · low precision | 4.8% | 5.1% |
| Other family: female householder, no spouse present | 134 ±67 | 11.5% ±5.5 pp | 8.1% | 12.2% |
| Nonfamily: householder living alone | 339 ±98 | 29.0% ±7.3 pp | 31.9% | 28.7% |
| Nonfamily: householder not living alone | 34 ±37 · low precision | 2.9% ±3.1 pp · low precision | 6.8% | 7.0% |
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Households with people under 18 | 248 ±71 | 21.2% ±5.3 pp | 29.0% | 29.5% |
| Households without people under 18 | 921 ±142 | 78.8% ±4.7 pp | 71.0% | 70.5% |
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-person nonfamily households | 339 ±98 | 29.0% ±7.3 pp | 31.9% | 28.7% |
| Two-person households | 568 ±140 | 48.6% ±9.8 pp | 35.5% | 33.8% |
| Three-person households | 144 ±75 · low precision | 12.3% ±6.1 pp | 12.4% | 15.3% |
| Four-person households | 65 ±39 · low precision | 5.6% ±3.3 pp · low precision | 10.5% | 12.6% |
| Five-person households | 25 ±25 · low precision | 2.1% ±2.1 pp · low precision | 6.1% | 5.9% |
| Six-person households | 22 ±26 · low precision | 1.9% ±2.2 pp · low precision | 2.2% | 2.2% |
| Seven or more people | 6 ±14 · low precision | 0.5% ±1.2 pp · low precision | 1.5% | 1.4% |
A family household contains related people under the Census definition. A nonfamily household can contain one person or unrelated people sharing a home. Households with children can also appear in the household-type and size tables, so those tables must not be added together. Household estimates exclude people living in group quarters from the household universe.
Nativity and languages spoken at home
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native | 2,298 ±320 | 98.2% ±1.8 pp | 96.0% | 85.9% |
| Foreign born | 43 ±50 · low precision | 1.8% ±2.1 pp · low precision | 4.0% | 14.1% |
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English only | 2,143 ±302 | 95.7% ±3.9 pp | 92.9% | 77.7% |
| Spanish | 25 ±25 · low precision | 1.1% ±1.1 pp · low precision | 2.6% | 13.6% |
| French, Haitian, or Cajun | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.1% | 0.7% |
| German or other West Germanic | 24 ±37 · low precision | 1.1% ±1.6 pp · low precision | 0.8% | 0.5% |
| Russian, Polish, or other Slavic | 2 ±26 · low precision | 0.1% ±1.2 pp · low precision | 0.4% | 0.7% |
| Other Indo-European | 5 ±7 · low precision | 0.2% ±0.3 pp · low precision | 0.4% | 2.0% |
| Korean | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.1% | 0.3% |
| Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.1% | 1.1% |
| Vietnamese | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.1% | 0.5% |
| Tagalog, including Filipino | 20 ±38 · low precision | 0.9% ±1.7 pp · low precision | 0.2% | 0.6% |
| Other Asian and Pacific Island | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.4% | 1.1% |
| Arabic | 0 ±10 · low precision | 0.0% ±0.4 pp · low precision | 0.1% | 0.5% |
| Other and unspecified | 20 ±25 · low precision | 0.9% ±1.1 pp · low precision | 1.8% | 0.8% |
Foreign born means not a U.S. citizen at birth; it includes naturalized citizens. Language categories describe speech at home among people age five and older. A language other than English at home does not establish that someone cannot speak English. This city page uses the published C16001 summary categories because the more detailed B16001 table does not provide these city records in this release.
Educational attainment
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than high school graduate | 158 ±91 · low precision | 8.9% ±4.9 pp · low precision | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school graduate or equivalency | 569 ±157 | 32.0% ±7.3 pp | 29.0% | 26.0% |
| Some college, no degree | 424 ±135 | 23.8% ±6.6 pp | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s degree | 163 ±75 | 9.2% ±4.0 pp | 12.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s degree | 321 ±104 | 18.0% ±5.1 pp | 21.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate or professional degree | 144 ±59 | 8.1% ±3.1 pp | 10.0% | 14.1% |
The denominator excludes residents under 25. Each person is counted in the highest attainment category they completed. This table does not measure the quality of local schools or the education level of every current student.
Residence one year earlier
| Category | Count ± MOE | Share ± MOE (pp) | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Same house | 2,003 ±312 | 85.7% ±6.2 pp | 87.0% | 87.7% |
| Moved within same county | 119 ±103 · low precision | 5.1% ±4.4 pp · low precision | 5.7% | 6.3% |
| Moved from a different county in the same state | 89 ±64 · low precision | 3.8% ±2.7 pp · low precision | 3.7% | 3.1% |
| Moved from a different state | 124 ±106 · low precision | 5.3% ±4.5 pp · low precision | 3.2% | 2.3% |
| Moved from abroad | 2 ±26 · low precision | 0.1% ±1.1 pp · low precision | 0.3% | 0.6% |
These are respondents’ residence patterns one year before their survey response, pooled across the five-year window. They are not a net migration count for 2025. A person can move to a different house within the same city or county; moves within the same county should not automatically be interpreted as new arrivals to the city.
Health insurance, internet access and veterans
11.7% of Custer residents (±4.8 percentage points) had no health insurance coverage when surveyed, compared with 9.0% in South Dakota and 8.4% nationally. 90.2% of households subscribe to broadband of any type, including cellular data plans. A subscription is not the same as available service: the FCC National Broadband Map shows providers at a specific address.
| Measure | Custer | South Dakota | U.S. | Compared with South Dakota |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| People without health insurance Civilian noninstitutionalized population | 11.7% ±4.8 pp | 9.0% | 8.4% | Not statistically different |
| Households with a broadband subscription Households | 90.2% ±4.6 pp | 89.6% | 91.0% | Not statistically different |
| Veterans Civilian population age 18 and older | 10.1% ±3.7 pp | 7.9% | 6.2% | Not statistically different |
Reading and reusing the estimates
The Census table links above lead to the original detailed tables. Counts, source universes and uncertainty are retained in the source observation download for Custer . Compare these figures with the same survey window; do not compare one city’s five-year estimate with another city’s annual estimate as though they measured the same period. For methods, see uncertainty and denominator calculations.
Read Custer housing and cost context or return to the city profile.