North Dakota vs South Dakota

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

North Dakota

Rank #12

Overall Score

69.5

Category Wins

3/10

South Dakota

Rank #11

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.6

Category Wins

5/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

0.98%

Property Tax

0.84%

Cost of Living

$1,750

Farm Land $/Acre

$1,950

140 days

Growing Season

160 days

22"

Annual Rainfall

28"

9/10

Soil Quality

9/10

Safety (Rural)

8/10

9/10

Gun Friendly

9/10

4 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4.1 hrs

83%

Broadband

81%

South Dakota Edges Out North Dakota Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.6 vs 69.5, South Dakota comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 5 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: North Dakota offers cheaper farmland at $1,750/acre vs $1,950/acre. South Dakota has a longer growing season (160 vs 140 days). South Dakota has lower property taxes (0.84% vs 0.98%).

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	North Dakota ND	South Dakota SD
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	No
	2.5%	—
	7.87%	7.33%
	0.98%	0.84%
	96	94
Land & Building
	$1,750	$1,950
	Yes (Statewide)	No (Local Adoption)
	Permitted with local approval; generally allowed	Permitted with local zoning approval; increasingly common
Climate & Growing
	3a-4a	3a-5a
	140	160
	22"	28"
	9	9
	6	6
	5	6
Water & Energy
	Permitted	Permitted
	4	4.1
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Minimal	Minimal
	9	9
	Very strong	Very strong
	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	284	348
	38%	42%
Demographics & Community
	11	11
	40%	44%
	83%	81%
Business
	#9	#12
	$125/yr	$150/yr
	2.1%	2.7%

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