Oregon vs South Dakota

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

Oregon

Rank #18

Overall Score

67.3

Category Wins

4/10

South Dakota

Rank #11

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.6

Category Wins

6/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

0.98%

Property Tax

0.84%

108

Cost of Living

$4,200

Farm Land $/Acre

$1,950

210 days

Growing Season

160 days

70"

Annual Rainfall

28"

8/10

Soil Quality

9/10

7/10

Safety (Rural)

8/10

6/10

Gun Friendly

9/10

4.4 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4.1 hrs

88%

Broadband

81%

South Dakota Edges Out Oregon Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.6 vs 67.3, South Dakota comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 6 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: South Dakota offers cheaper farmland at $1,950/acre vs $4,200/acre. Oregon has a longer growing season (210 vs 160 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	Oregon OR	South Dakota SD
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	No
	9.9%	—
	0%	7.33%
	0.98%	0.84%
	108	94
Land & Building
	$4,200	$1,950
	Yes (Statewide)	No (Local Adoption)
	Increasingly permitted with zoning approval; ADU-friendly policies	Permitted with local zoning approval; increasingly common
Climate & Growing
	8a-9b	3a-5a
	210	160
	70"	28"
	8	9
	5	6
	2	6
Water & Energy
	Permitted	Permitted
	4.4	4.1
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Minimal	Minimal
	6	9
	Very strong	Very strong
	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	407	348
	46%	42%
Demographics & Community
	42	11
	21%	44%
	88%	81%
Business
	#39	#12
	$50/yr	$150/yr
	3.8%	2.7%

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