What is the population of Watertown city?

Watertown city has 22,859 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #5 of 485 in South Dakota.

What is the median household income in Watertown city?

Median household income in Watertown city is $62,721 a year, 20.1% below the national figure of $78,538.

How much does it cost to rent or buy in Watertown city?

Median gross rent is $904 a month and the median home value is $212,300, so rent absorbs about 17.3% of median household income.

Is Watertown city affordable compared with the rest of the US?

Homes cost about 3.4× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Watertown city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 17.3% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.

Aerial view of a dense city center, illustrating the US cities ZIP code directory

South Dakota · Census place 69300

Watertown, SD population, income and ZIP codes

Quick answer

The population of the city of Watertown, South Dakota (Watertown, SD — Census place “Watertown city”) is 22,859 residents, ranking #5 of 485 places in South Dakota. Median household income is $62,721, the median home is worth $212,300 and median gross rent runs $904 a month. Looking for the Watertown South Dakota ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Watertown, SD: 57201.

Population: 22,859Watertown city residents
Median household income: $62,721Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
Median home value: $212,300Owner-occupied units
Median gross rent: $904Rent plus utilities, monthly
Median age: 39.4 yrsAll residents
Homeownership rate: 62.7%Owner-occupied households

Watertown ZIP codes (South Dakota)

Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Watertown.

The Watertown SD ZIP code list below covers 1 ZIP code. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.

57201

What the numbers mean in Watertown city

Housing cost measured against local earnings.

A household earning the Watertown city median would spend about 17.3% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 3.4× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 10.7% of residents and 62.7% of households own their home.

Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year

Watertown city, SD in context

How this area compares with national benchmarks.

Watertown city is a mid-size town in South Dakota, with 22,859 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #5 of 485 ranked by population — larger than 99% of them. The median age here is 39.4 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly older profile than the country as a whole. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.

Households in Watertown city earn a median of $62,721 a year, 20.1% below the national figure of $78,538 and 4% below the $65,500 median for the 79 South Dakota cities we cover. This figure covers the household, not the worker: two people on ordinary wages at one address outrank a single professional in the same table. Poverty reaches 10.7% of residents here, below the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Watertown city is valued at $212,300, 30% below the national figure and 10% above the $192,800 peer median, while median gross rent runs $904 a month, 35.7% below the national figure, or roughly $10,848 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 17.3% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is cheap relative to what people here earn. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 3.4×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 62.7% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans more heavily on renters. Gross rent folds in the utilities a tenant pays separately, so it is closer to the real monthly outlay than a headline rent figure.

No figure on this page is estimated by us; each one comes straight from the published ACS tables for this area. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.

Compare with nearby places

Places of similar size in South Dakota.

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Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this area.

What is the population of Watertown city?: Watertown city has 22,859 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #5 of 485 in South Dakota.
What is the median household income in Watertown city?: Median household income in Watertown city is $62,721 a year, 20.1% below the national figure of $78,538.
How much does it cost to rent or buy in Watertown city?: Median gross rent is $904 a month and the median home value is $212,300, so rent absorbs about 17.3% of median household income.
Is Watertown city affordable compared with the rest of the US?: Homes cost about 3.4× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Watertown city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 17.3% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
How current is this Watertown city data?: All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.