IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Living in Country around Vale, SD
Country around Vale is a rural area of about 598 people in Meade County, South Dakota, named for the post office its ZIP code uses. It's about 38 miles from Rapid City, SD and 346 miles from Denver, CO, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 87°F and winter highs 35°F, with about 45 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $285k and rent runs about $1k a month.
598people
$285kTypical home
$1,264/moRent
87° / 35°Summer / winter
45"Snow
251Sunny days
75Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Rural — about 598 people spread over the area
- Part of a metro area
- About 2 people per sq mi
- 346 mi to Denver, CO
- 38 mi to Rapid City, SD
- 31 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $285k (≈$1,799/mo)
- Median rent $1,264/mo
- Median household income $80k
- Property tax about 0.4% of value
- 5.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 87°F
- Winter highs around 35°F
- Comfortable summers (dew point 51°F)
- 251 sunny days a year (74 totally clear)
- 114 cloudy days a year
- 40 of 90 winter days are gray
- 75 days a year with rain or snow
- 45" of snow a year
- 14 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- 3 days a year over 100°F
- 43 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
Safety
- Very low violent crime (170 per 100k), county-wide
- Very low property crime (832 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 39
- 29% of households have kids
- 22% are 65 or older
- 17% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 2% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 17 min
- 22% walk or take transit to work
- 40 mi to RAP airport
- 337 mi to DEN (major hub)
- 296 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 75% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1966
- 90% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Gently rolling terrain
- Elevation 2,766 ft
- 933 mi to the ocean
- 98 mi to a big lake
- 39 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 37 mi to the nearest ski area
- 16 mi to the nearest campground
- 1 golf course within 25 mi
Things to do
- 8 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 6 bars within 25 mi
- 3 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 2 museums within 25 mi
- 1 brewery or distillery within 25 mi
- 37 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 13% of South Dakota districts (reading)
- 21 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 15 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 37 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 22 mi to the nearest vet
- 22 mi to the nearest dog park
- 6 congregations per 10k people
- 34 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Meade County: R+51 in 2024
- South Dakota: R+29 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- Low tornado risk
- Moderate wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Very low flood risk
- High drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Very low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk
Limited data: this place is small enough that most of its Census numbers (rent, home value, income, age) are blended with county figures. Treat its match as a rough guide.