South Dakota vs Washington

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

South Dakota

Rank #11

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.6

Category Wins

7/10

Washington

Rank #31

Overall Score

64.6

Category Wins

3/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

0.84%

Property Tax

0.94%

Cost of Living

112

$1,950

Farm Land $/Acre

$4,700

160 days

Growing Season

210 days

28"

Annual Rainfall

100"

9/10

Soil Quality

7/10

8/10

Safety (Rural)

7/10

9/10

Gun Friendly

6/10

4.1 hrs

Solar (PSH)

3.8 hrs

81%

Broadband

89%

South Dakota Edges Out Washington Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.6 vs 64.6, South Dakota comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 7 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 $4,700/acre. Washington has a longer growing season (210 vs 160 days). South Dakota has lower property taxes (0.84% vs 0.94%).

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	South Dakota SD	Washington WA
Taxes & Cost
	No	No
	—	—
	7.33%	9.22%
	0.84%	0.94%
	94	112
Land & Building
	$1,950	$4,700
	No (Local Adoption)	Yes (Statewide)
	Permitted with local zoning approval; increasingly common	Permitted with zoning approval; increasingly allowed
Climate & Growing
	3a-5a	8a-10a
	160	210
	28"	100"
	9	7
	6	5
	6	1
Water & Energy
	Permitted	Permitted
	4.1	3.8
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Minimal	Minimal
	9	6
	Very strong	Strong
	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	348	388
	42%	44%
Demographics & Community
	11	106
	44%	17%
	81%	89%
Business
	#12	#22
	$150/yr	$180/yr
	2.7%	3.9%

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