Stark County, ND
County Profile
33,302 residents. Safety, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Stark County, ND.
Several figures AreaProfile publishes are measured by county and nowhere finer — death rates by intent among them. On this page those describe the geography they are printed on, which is not true of the city and ZIP pages that inherit them.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 13 sourcesStark County ranks in the top 24% of counties measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 2.2% and median household income of $84,449.
56 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 2% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.
Housing is more affordable relative to local incomes than in most counties measured: rent takes 26% of renter income and the median home is 2.7 times what its owners earn.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 2.2%, lower than in 99% of the 1,467 measured US counties.
Employment fell 3.0% over the past year, to 16,488 employed residents.
30% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 76% of measured US counties.
Median household income of $84,449 is higher than in 86% of measured US counties.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsfiling years 2022–2023 | $61,799 | 58th percentileof 1,417 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftfiling years 2022–2023 | $67,007 | 71st percentileof 1,417 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$3,9802024 ACS 5-Year | $84,449 | Top 14%of 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$2,9042024 ACS 5-Year | $40,951 | Top 23%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per-capita personal income2023 | $71,358 | Top 16%of 1,389 | 2023 |
| Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 11.2% | Top 36%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±1.4 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 18.7 min | Top 10%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 30.0% | Top 24%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 77.8% | 51st percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 16,488 | Bottom 24%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | +0.2% | Top 48%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | −3.0% | Bottom 9%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 16,851 | 23rd percentileof 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 83.1% | Top 13%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.1% | 32nd percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | −0.1% | Bottom 43%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 2.2% | Top 1%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 7.1% | 35th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
Median household income, successive ACS releases
46% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 48% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 11.7 students for every full-time teacher across 17 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dickinson High School | DICKINSON 1 | 1,022 | 15.0 | 38% | 42% |
| Dickinson Middle School | DICKINSON 1 | 944 | 16.0 | 49% | 48% |
| Prairie Rose Elementary School | DICKINSON 1 | 490 | 8.4 | 52% | 57% |
| Lincoln Elementary School | DICKINSON 1 | 387 | 8.4 | 52% | 52% |
| Jefferson Elementary School | DICKINSON 1 | 370 | 9.7 | 52% | 62% |
| Heart River Elementary School | DICKINSON 1 | 273 | 16.1 | 37% | 42% |
| South Heart Elementary School | SOUTH HEART 9 | 257 | 12.8 | 57% | 52% |
| Roosevelt Elementary School | DICKINSON 1 | 254 | 8.2 | 52% | 52% |
| P S Berg Elementary School | DICKINSON 1 | 223 | 8.3 | 37% | 47% |
| South Heart High School | SOUTH HEART 9 | 180 | 12.0 | 42% | 52% |
| Taylor-Richardton Elementary School | RICHARDTON-TAYLOR 34 | 142 | 12.9 | 70% | 50% |
| Richardton-Taylor High School | RICHARDTON-TAYLOR 34 | 139 | 11.6 | 27% | 37% |
29.3% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against North Dakota’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of North Dakota is up 39% over five years, and up 4.6% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $2,411 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.89% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,056, some 10% above the $960 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,056 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $42,200 a year, about 50% of the median household income here of $84,449.
The typical renter household here spends 26% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $960 a month.
A median home at $271,700 costs 2.7 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $102,377, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.
The figures above are measured against Stark County’s median household income of $84,449, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of North Dakota’s figure2026 Q2 | +4.6% | 70th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of North Dakota’s figure2026 Q2 | +38.8% | 24th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of North Dakota’s figure2026 Q2 | +56.3% | 4th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year | 2.7 | Bottom 42%of 3,217 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 66.8% | 20th percentileof 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±452024 ACS 5-Year | 15,514 | 56th percentileof 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $874 | Top 38%of 1,423 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $1,469 | Top 44%of 1,423 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $1,056 | Top 34%of 1,423 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$462024 ACS 5-Year | $960 | Bottom 36%of 3,215 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$9,0552024 ACS 5-Year | $271,700 | 76th percentileof 3,219 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$832024 ACS 5-Year | $2,411 | 75th percentileof 3,172 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$6,3932024 ACS 5-Year | $102,377 | Top 12%of 3,218 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.04%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.89% | 57th percentileof 3,126 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 26.3% | Top 35%of 3,216 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±1242024 ACS 5-Year | 319 | 47th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 2.1% | 43rd percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 10.7% | 61st percentileof 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±3652024 ACS 5-Year | 1,977 | 54th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 33,767 in 2024.
Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 72 units authorized in 2025, up 260% on the prior year.
New construction is predominantly single-family: of 56 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.
Federal tax returns show Stark County gained about 0.2% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $61,799, below the $67,007 of households that moved out.
At 1.7 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US counties.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Burleigh County, ND 85 people · 5.2% of arrivals
- Morton County, ND 72 people · 4.4% of arrivals
- Williams County, ND 55 people · 3.4% of arrivals
- Dunn County, ND 52 people · 3.2% of arrivals
- Hettinger County, ND 40 people · 2.5% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Burleigh County, ND 134 people · 8.6% of departures
- Dunn County, ND 71 people · 4.5% of departures
- Morton County, ND 69 people · 4.4% of departures
- Cass County, ND 57 people · 3.7% of departures
- Williams County, ND 36 people · 2.3% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
4 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 84°F and January a low of 6°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 15.6 inches.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 15.6" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 6°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 84°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 4 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 53°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are cold wave, inland flooding and hail, with cold wave alone responsible for 36% of it. Inland flooding is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Overall hazard risk is lower than 88% of measured US counties.
Low or minimal exposure: wildfire, tornado, drought, heat wave, inland flooding, landslide, earthquake, hurricane, volcanic activity, coastal flooding, tsunami, avalanche.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). These are FEMA’s own figures for this county rather than a value derived from surrounding geographies. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
These are deaths, not offenses — they say nothing about burglary, theft or assault.
Stark County has a modeled homicide rate of about 3.6 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.
Firearm deaths of all intents run at about 17.5 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.
Drug overdose deaths run at about 12.5 per 100,000 residents in Stark County.
Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.
Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe Stark County as a whole. They are shown and not scored. How to read death rates.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Reported crime
- Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
- Cost of living
- Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
- Air quality
- The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
No airport meeting the AreaProfile major-airport definition lies within 100 miles; the nearest is 192 miles away.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 89.0% | Top 34%of 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 192 mi | Bottom 1%of 1,463 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 0 | Bottom 1%of 1,463 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 7.6% | Top 27%of 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rapid City Rgnl | RAP | 192 mi | 8,701 ft |
| Sheridan County | SHR | 252 mi | 8,301 ft |
| Hector Intl | FAR | 276 mi | 9,001 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyData & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Income | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Safety | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics Provisional county-level mortality by intent | March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.