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Labor Market Information Center
2025 Annual Report
Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages
Covered Workers & Annual Pay by Establishment Size
Establishment size data provides a comparison of the number of small and large businesses in South Dakota. The average number of workers at the worksite location determines establishment size. A worksite is generally defined as a single physical location at which predominantly one type of economic activity is conducted.
Graph A displays the number of South Dakota establishments by establishment size. This chart shows small businesses are predominant in South Dakota. During 2025 the 0-9 workers size class had the largest number of establishments, accounting for 80.5% of all establishments.

The distribution of employees by establishment size shows a different picture than the distribution of establishments. Smaller businesses have a much smaller slice of the pie. Graph B indicates that smaller businesses (fewer than 10 workers) employed only 19.9% of the covered workers in South Dakota in 2025. The number of workers is evenly dispersed among the establishment size groups.

Covered Workers & Annual Pay by Establishment Size and Industry
Number of Private Establishments, Workers and Pay By Establishment Size and By Supersector 2025 |
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| Supersector | 0-9 | 10-19 | 20-49 | 50-99 | 100-249 | 250-499 | 500+ |
| Natural Resources and Mining | |||||||
| Establishments | 1,219 | 105 | 65 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Workers | 3,548 | 1,455 | 1,928 | 1,033 | 511 | 0 | 0 |
| Annual Pay | $49,816 | $60,803 | $60,604 | $62,898 | $64,004 | $0 | $0 |
| Construction | |||||||
| Establishments | 4,093 | 358 | 233 | 59 | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Workers | 9,863 | 4,900 | 6,932 | 3,906 | 3,857 | 0 | 0 |
| Annual Pay | $54,822 | $68,587 | $78,202 | $85,970 | $86,361 | $0 | $0 |
| Manufacturing | |||||||
| Establishments | 560 | 158 | 183 | 76 | 64 | 25 | 10 |
| Workers | 1,908 | 2,157 | 6,020 | 5,133 | 10,332 | 8,382 | 10,371 |
| Annual Pay | $48,420 | $53,664 | $65,844 | $70,447 | $65,198 | $72,567 | $66,088 |
| Trade, Transportation, and Utilities | |||||||
| Establishments | 6,713 | 1,283 | 737 | 189 | 61 | 25 | 3 |
| Workers | 18,674 | 17,270 | 21,851 | 13,022 | 8,877 | 8,729 | 3,464 |
| Annual Pay | $59,656 | $50,798 | $57,920 | $59,558 | $53,020 | $37,887 | $41,729 |
| Information | |||||||
| Establishments | 950 | 60 | 38 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Workers | 1,325 | 796 | 1,123 | 555 | 214 | * | * |
| Annual Pay | $87,358 | $72,265 | $54,773 | $63,465 | $83,745 | * | * |
| Financial Activities | |||||||
| Establishments | 3,968 | 263 | 142 | 34 | 24 | 6 | 4 |
| Workers | 8,564 | 3,428 | 4,082 | 2,327 | 3,823 | 1,785 | 2,907 |
| Annual Pay | $77,461 | $87,570 | $102,125 | $90,052 | $99,238 | $81,538 | $96,182 |
| Professional and Business Services | |||||||
| Establishments | 8,480 | 414 | 265 | 56 | 27 | 7 | 1 |
| Workers | 13,036 | 5,538 | 7,773 | 3,947 | 4,101 | 2,402 | * |
| Annual Pay | $85,112 | $67,642 | $71,964 | $79,573 | $83,085 | $105,764 | * |
| Education and Health Services | |||||||
| Establishments | 2,740 | 480 | 354 | 143 | 72 | 21 | 14 |
| Workers | 6,493 | 6,504 | 10,808 | 9,727 | 10,839 | 6,931 | 24,341 |
| Annual Pay | $54,511 | $51,118 | $52,653 | $58,278 | $63,442 | $68,853 | $91,389 |
| Leisure and Hospitality Services | |||||||
| Establishments | 1,982 | 758 | 638 | 140 | 29 | 3 | 0 |
| Workers | 7,067 | 10,551 | 18,720 | 9,188 | 4,233 | 1,012 | 0 |
| Annual Pay | $22,837 | $21,179 | $23,914 | $25,222 | $32,192 | $26,919 | $0 |
| Other Services | |||||||
| Establishments | 2,404 | 257 | 67 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| Workers | 5,819 | 3,307 | 1,872 | 763 | 1,145 | * | 0 |
| Annual Pay | $47,921 | $47,980 | $51,981 | $43,673 | $37,424 | * | $0 |
| Total Private Ownership | |||||||
| Establishments | 33,109 | 4,136 | 2,722 | 733 | 318 | 91 | 33 |
| Workers | 76,297 | 55,905 | 81,107 | 49,601 | 47,930 | 30,552 | 42,477 |
| Annual Pay | $60,378 | $51,239 | $55,146 | $59,045 | $64,988 | $64,224 | $81,972 |
*Data was suppressed to prevent disclosure of confidential information. |
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