24/7 Wall St. Insights

• With more than 2.5 million people on payroll, the Department of Defense is the largest employer in the United States.
• The bulk of DOD employees are active-duty service members, who can be deployed to combat at any time.
• While these men and women are stationed across the country, the presence of several major bases in South Dakota has made the state a critical hub for American military operations.
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With nearly 2.6 million people on payroll in 2022, the Department of Defense ranks as the single largest employer in the United States. For comparison, the global workforce of Walmart, the world’s largest private sector employer, totals just 2.1 millions. While there are about 734,000 civilians employed by the Pentagon, most DOD employees are active-duty troops, reservists, and National Guardsmen.

Across all military branches, there are over 1.1 million active-duty service members in the U.S. — as well as an additional 743,000 reserve troops and Guardsmen. Although it falls under purview of the Department of Homeland Security, rather than the DOD, the U.S. Coast Guard employs another 57,000 Americans. The backbone of American military power, these men and women are stationed across the country. But in certain states, the presence of military personnel is far more pronounced than in others. (Here is a look at the number of active-duty service members in each state.)

While multiple branches of the military have troops stationed in South Dakota, the U.S. Air Force has an especially large footprint. The U.S. Air Force traces its roots back to 1907, when it was established as the U.S. Army Signal Corps. The Air Force spun off from the Army in 1947 under the National Security Act, becoming an independent military branch. Today, there are over 265,600 active-duty men and women serving in the Air Force.

Currently, South Dakota is home to one of the highest per-capita concentrations of active-duty Air Force personnel of any state. According to data from the DOD’s 2022 Demographics Profile, there are about 3,300 men and women serving in the Air Force in South Dakota, or about 37 for every 10,000 people in the state. For comparison, there are only 8.0 active-duty Air Force service members for every 10,000 people nationwide.

South Dakota’s status as a hub for the U.S. Air Force is due in large part to the presence of Ellsworth Air Force Base, located northeast of Rapid City. (Here is a look at the newest U.S. military bases.)

This is the number of active-duty and reserve troops, from each branch of the U.S. military, stationed in South Dakota.

Why It Matters

There are over 1.1 million active-duty troops and another 743,000 reservists and Guardsmen serving in the U.S. military. To maintain preparedness for a host of rising threats, these men and women are stationed at bases across the country. While the U.S. military has a footprint in every state in the country, the Air Force has an especially strong presence in South Dakota.

U.S. Army

• Active duty-troop count: 48 — 5th fewest of 50 states (>0.1% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 0.5 per 10,000 people — 18th lowest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 351 — 6th fewest of 50 states (0.2% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 3.9 per 10,000 people — 14th lowest of 50 states

U.S. Navy

• Active duty-troop count: 3 — 3rd fewest of 50 states (>0.1% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: >1 per 10,000 people — 4th lowest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 63 — 4th fewest of 50 states (0.1% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 0.7 per 10,000 people — 11th lowest of 50 states

U.S. Marine Corps

• Active duty-troop count: 15 — 5th fewest of 50 states (>0.1% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 0.2 per 10,000 people — 4th lowest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: None
• Concentration of reserve troops: >1 per 10,000 people — the lowest of 50 states

U.S. Air Force

• Active duty-troop count: 3,321 — 22nd fewest of 50 states (1.3% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 36.5 per 10,000 people — 6th highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 22 — 13th fewest of 50 states (>0.1% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 0.2 per 10,000 people — 14th lowest of 50 states

U.S. Space Force

• Active duty-troop count: 1 — 13th fewest of 50 states (>0.1% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: >1 per 10,000 people — 24th lowest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: N/A
• Concentration of reserve troops: N/A

Army National Guard

• Active duty-troop count: N/A
• Concentration of active-duty troops: N/A
• Reserve troop count: 2,994 — 11th fewest of 50 states (0.9% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 32.9 per 10,000 people — 2nd highest of 50 states

Air National Guard

• Active duty-troop count: N/A
• Concentration of active-duty troops: N/A
• Reserve troop count: 1,097 — 9th fewest of 50 states (1.1% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 12.1 per 10,000 people — 6th highest of 50 states

U.S. Coast Guard

• Total Guardsman count: None
• Concentration of reserve and active-duty Guardsman: N/A

U.S. Department of Defense Total

• Active duty-troop count: 3,388 — 17th fewest of 50 states (0.3% of all active-duty troops in service branch)
• Concentration of active-duty troops: 37.2 per 10,000 people — 19th highest of 50 states
• Reserve troop count: 4,527 — 8th fewest of 50 states (0.6% of all reserve troops in service branch)
• Concentration of reserve troops: 49.8 per 10,000 people — 5th highest of 50 states

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