Best PlacesEdmunds County, SD Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Edmunds County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Edmunds County ranks 452nd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low taxes by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Edmunds County
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Edmunds County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Edmunds County ranks high
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 97% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than 97% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 155 pleasant days a year, better than 93% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 92% of counties
- Local economyBetter than 92% of counties
Where Edmunds County ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 3% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than only 4% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 7% of counties
- BikingBetter than only 29% of counties
- TransitBetter than only 35% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Edmunds County
A household needs to earn about $48,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Edmunds County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $81,981, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Edmunds County's effective rate of 0.81%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Edmunds County
Edmunds County runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Edmunds County.
Who works in Edmunds County, and how
Work in Edmunds County centers on agriculture & forestry and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 77%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in Edmunds County
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Edmunds County.
Is Edmunds County growing, and who is moving in?
Edmunds County has grown about 2% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Greeley, CO.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Edmunds County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Edmunds County, month by month
Edmunds County sees roughly 155 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 23, with lows near 6. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23° | 14° | 6° |
| April | 53° | 40° | 30° |
| July | 84° | 71° | 60° |
| October | 58° | 44° | 35° |
Flying in and out of Edmunds County
The nearest airport, Aberdeen Regional, is about 35 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain, about 291 miles away.
The best schools in and around Edmunds County
Schools across Edmunds County average a B−, better than 63% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Hoven Elementary - 02A+ · 75% proficient
- Ipswich Elementary - 02A− · 60% proficient
- Warner Elementary - 02A− · 60% proficient
Top middle schools
- Warner Middle School - 03B− · 40% proficient
- Ipswich Middle School - 04B− · 40% proficient
- Browns Valley MiddleC+ · 37% proficient
Top high schools
- Edmunds Central High School - 01A · 75% proficient
- Northwestern High School - 01C+ · 40% proficient
- Warner High School - 01C+ · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Edmunds County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Edmunds County measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Edmunds County against the other 3,143 counties.
Common questions about living in Edmunds County
Is Edmunds County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Edmunds County ranks 452nd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on low taxes, clean air, and the weather, and lowest on tree cover and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Edmunds County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $183,326. The overall cost of living runs about 21% below the national average. Set against a $81,981 median income, cost of living beats 92% of counties.
Is Edmunds County safe?
Edmunds County is safer than 38% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $402 per resident a year.
Compare Edmunds County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Edmunds County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Edmunds County represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Edmunds County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Edmunds County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Edmunds County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Edmunds County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Edmunds County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Edmunds County detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.