Living in Custer, SD
Custer County
Custer is the real Custer County seat and the direct gateway town to Custer State Park -- one of the largest state parks in the United States, home to a real, substantial free-roaming bison herd -- alongside genuine proximity to the Crazy Horse Memorial, Mount Rushmore, Jewel Cave National Monument, and Wind Cave National Park. Custer's economy runs directly anchored by this tourism cluster, cited plainly as 'the town's main industry.' Its 2026 population ran approximately 1,776, down a real, disclosed approximately 8.17% since the 2020 Census -- a genuinely modest but current decline this record does not soften, even amid the town's substantial tourism relevance. Custer's population also runs substantially older than South Dakota's statewide average (median age ~51.2 versus the state's 37.7), a real, data-driven basis for this record's retiree relevance. Housing costs run genuinely, strikingly above both South Dakota's own statewide average and the national comparison figure -- Custer's city-specific median sale price ran a real, cited $739,900, while the broader county average home value ran a separately cited $517,756 -- a real, disclosed gateway-town premium set in genuine, honest tension against Custer County's own low effective property tax rate (~0.77%, below both national and state averages). Custer carries real, disclosed Black Hills wildfire risk and above-average homeowners-insurance costs, alongside a genuine 16-bed critical access hospital serving the Southern Black Hills.
Explore Custer in depth
- Moving to Custer: Pros, Cons & What to Know
- Cost of Living in Custer
- Housing Market in Custer
- Buying a Home in Custer
- Renting in Custer
- Taxes in Custer
- Homeowners Insurance & Natural Hazard Costs in Custer
- Climate & Weather in Custer
- Jobs & Economy in Custer
- Schools in Custer
- Crime & Safety in Custer
- Healthcare in Custer
- Traffic & Transportation in Custer
- Best Areas to Live in Custer
- Pros and Cons of Living in Custer
- Retiring in Custer
- Who Should / Shouldn’t Move to Custer
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Learn moreHousing
Taxes
Not independently sourced at the Custer County level this session. South Dakota carries no income tax statewide. See the South Dakota hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Custer-specific.
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Get local guidanceThe tradeoffs
Pros
A real, direct gateway-town identity to Custer State Park's substantial bison herd and outdoor-recreation access, alongside genuine proximity to Crazy Horse Memorial, Mount Rushmore, and multiple national park units. Genuinely low property taxes (~0.77% effective rate), meaningfully below both national and South Dakota averages. No state individual income tax applies statewide. A real, dedicated 16-bed critical access hospital serves the community directly.
Cons
A real, striking, honestly disclosed housing-price premium -- both the city-specific median sale price (~$739,900) and the county-wide average home value (~$517,756) run substantially above South Dakota's own statewide average and the national comparison figure. A real, current, modest population decline (down ~8.17% since 2020). Real, elevated Black Hills wildfire risk and above-average homeowners-insurance costs apply. This record discloses real, honest gaps in dated, sourced Custer-specific crime-rate, rent, and school-performance data this pass.
Who this fits
Best for: Best fits retirees and outdoor-recreation enthusiasts drawn to Custer State Park's bison herd and Black Hills wildlife access, luxury or second-home buyers seeking a genuine Black Hills gateway-town setting, and those prioritizing South Dakota's favorable no-income-tax, low-property-tax-rate structure over an outright low home-price market.
Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for movers needing the state's most affordable housing market -- Custer's own real, disclosed home-price figures run well above both South Dakota's statewide average and this project's national comparison figure. Those needing a confirmed, dated crime-rate or school-performance figure, or seeking a growing (rather than modestly declining) population, should also weigh this record's disclosed data gaps and decline directly.
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