South Dakota earthquake risk
Pennington County has the highest earthquake risk in South Dakota, scoring 56.9 out of 100 — rated "Very Low" by FEMA's National Risk Index.
| # | County | NRI score | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pennington County | 56.9 | Very Low |
| 2 | Lawrence County | 38.1 | Very Low |
| 3 | Meade County | 37.9 | Very Low |
| 4 | Minnehaha County | 37.2 | Very Low |
| 5 | Fall River County | 35.1 | Very Low |
| 6 | Yankton County | 29.3 | Very Low |
| 7 | Davison County | 28.4 | Very Low |
| 8 | Butte County | 28.3 | Very Low |
| 9 | Brown County | 27.8 | Very Low |
| 10 | Charles Mix County | 27.7 | Very Low |
| 11 | Beadle County | 26.3 | Very Low |
| 12 | Hutchinson County | 25.9 | Very Low |
| 13 | Oglala Lakota County | 25.4 | Very Low |
| 14 | Custer County | 25.1 | Very Low |
| 15 | Lincoln County | 24.7 | Very Low |
| 16 | Todd County | 24.4 | Very Low |
| 17 | Tripp County | 23.2 | Very Low |
| 18 | Brookings County | 23.1 | Very Low |
| 19 | Codington County | 21.7 | Very Low |
| 20 | Lake County | 21.5 | Very Low |
| 21 | McCook County | 20.1 | Very Low |
| 22 | Douglas County | 20 | Very Low |
| 23 | Brule County | 19.6 | Very Low |
| 24 | Jackson County | 19.5 | Very Low |
| 25 | Bennett County | 17.6 | Very Low |
| 26 | Aurora County | 17.1 | Very Low |
| 27 | Union County | 16.6 | Very Low |
| 28 | Turner County | 16.1 | Very Low |
| 29 | Spink County | 16 | Very Low |
| 30 | Hughes County | 15.9 | Very Low |
| 31 | Mellette County | 15.9 | Very Low |
| 32 | Gregory County | 15.5 | Very Low |
| 33 | Day County | 14.7 | Very Low |
| 34 | Bon Homme County | 13.6 | Very Low |
| 35 | Lyman County | 13.6 | Very Low |
| 36 | Clay County | 13.3 | Very Low |
| 37 | Hanson County | 13.2 | Very Low |
| 38 | Buffalo County | 12.9 | Very Low |
| 39 | Moody County | 12.5 | Very Low |
| 40 | Dewey County | 12.2 | Very Low |
| 41 | Sanborn County | 12.2 | Very Low |
| 42 | Kingsbury County | 12.1 | Very Low |
| 43 | Edmunds County | 11.6 | Very Low |
| 44 | Faulk County | 10.6 | Very Low |
| 45 | Ziebach County | 10.4 | Very Low |
| 46 | Jerauld County | 10 | Very Low |
| 47 | Miner County | 9.8 | Very Low |
| 48 | Jones County | 9.4 | Very Low |
| 49 | Hyde County | 9.1 | Very Low |
| 50 | Roberts County | 8.8 | Very Low |
| 51 | Hand County | 8.7 | Very Low |
| 52 | Hamlin County | 8.3 | Very Low |
| 53 | Potter County | 8.2 | Very Low |
| 54 | Marshall County | 8.1 | Very Low |
| 55 | McPherson County | 8 | Very Low |
| 56 | Haakon County | 7.7 | Very Low |
| 57 | Corson County | 7.4 | Very Low |
| 58 | Walworth County | 7 | Very Low |
| 59 | Sully County | 6.8 | Very Low |
| 60 | Deuel County | 6.3 | Very Low |
| 61 | Grant County | 6.3 | Very Low |
| 62 | Perkins County | 5.9 | Very Low |
| 63 | Harding County | 5.8 | Very Low |
| 64 | Campbell County | 4.2 | Very Low |
| 65 | Clark County | 4.1 | Very Low |
| 66 | Stanley County | 4 | Very Low |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0, December 2025. Scores are 0–100 percentile rankings among all US counties. See the methodology page for definitions. Download the full CSV for all counties.
Earthquake risk nationally:
Other hazard risks in South Dakota:
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest earthquake risk county in South Dakota?
Pennington County, SD has the highest earthquake risk in South Dakota, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 56.9 out of 100 (rated "Very Low").
What causes earthquake risk in South Dakota?
Earthquake risk reflects expected annual losses from ground shaking. High scores concentrate in California, the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and the New Madrid Seismic Zone (spanning Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, and neighboring states). NOAA's Storm Events Database does not track earthquakes, so recorded event counts are not shown.