Brookings, South Dakota Cost Of Living

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Overall 6%

Goods & Services 5%

Housing 16%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2020 and was released from C2ER in January, 2021; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Brookings	South Dakota	National
Cost of living	94	89	100
Goods & Services	95	93	100
Groceries	102	99	100
Health care	120	97	100
Housing	84	77	100
Transportation	99	92	100
Utilities	96	90	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Brookings is 6% higher than the South Dakota average
The cost of living in Brookings is 6% lower than the national average
Brookings housing is 16% lower than the national average
South Dakota general sales tax is 21% lower than the national average
South Dakota state income tax is 100% lower than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$76,886	$6,407	$1,794	$2,307
Renters	$26,819	$2,235	$626	$805

To approximate the cost of living and the housing affordability in Brookings, SD, we can look at the percentage of income that is available to be spent on monthly housing, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). To stay on the safe side, a consumer should not spend more than 28% of his or her gross income on housing-related expenses and costs and not more than 36% of income on all expenses and debts. Homeowners in Brookings have a median income of $76,886. Therefore, the amount that a consumer should spend on housing costs should be no more than $1,794 per month to avoid calamity and poverty. The renters in the city have an income of about $26,819, which would make their monthly maximum allowable rental costs $626.

South Dakota Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
South Dakota	4%	6%

South Dakota Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
South Dakota	0%	0%

Goods & Services

Item	Brookings	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$21.16	$18.62	13.6%
Beauty Salon	$30.55	$39.05	21.8%
Toothpaste	$2.27	$2.34	3.2%
Shampoo	$0.92	$1.06	13.2%
Movie	$8.83	$10.68	17.4%
Bowling	$9.17	$14.67	37.5%

Groceries

Item	Brookings	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$4.86	$4.22	15.1%
Fried Chicken	$1.64	$1.39	18.1%
Milk	$2.14	$2.05	4.4%
Potatoes	$3.84	$3.29	16.7%
Pizza	$11.66	$10.62	9.7%
Beer	$8.98	$9.38	4.2%

Health Care

Item	Brookings	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$125.17	$108.57	15.3%
Doctor	$204.33	$116.17	75.9%
Dentist	$101.00	$99.13	1.9%
Ibuprofen	$10.68	$9.68	10.4%
Lipitor	$375.37	$466.92	19.6%

Housing

Item	Brookings	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$164,500.00	$184,700.00	10.9%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$773.91	$1,197.42	35.4%
Apartment Rent	$675.00	$949.00	28.9%

Transportation

Item	Brookings	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.20	$2.22	0.9%
Tire Balancing	$47.72	$50.07	4.7%

Utilities

Item	Brookings	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$157.58	$167.67	6.0%
Phone	$182.10	$175.64	3.7%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Bruce, SD	156	78	-22%
Nunda, SD	61	79	-21%
Sinai, SD	101	83	-17%
Bushnell, SD	91	84	-16%
White, SD	496	85	-15%
Brookings, SD	23,292	94	-6%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Wilmington, MA	23,310	145	45%
Vicksburg, MS	23,320	82	-18%
Bloomington, CA	23,322	113	13%
Greenwood, SC	23,260	84	-16%
Copiague, NY	23,327	134	34%
Brookings, SD	23,292	94	-6%

Source: The Brookings, SD cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2020.