Storage & Grid · South Dakota

South Dakota Storage & Grid jobs: 340 employed (2024)

As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, South Dakota employs 340 people in the storage & grid sector — about 0.3% of the U.S. total. That makes South Dakota the 43rd-largest state for storage & grid jobs nationwide.

Storage & Grid Jobs in South Dakota (2024)

340 Rank #43 of 51

National share: 0.35% of all U.S. storage & grid jobs.

Typical Median Wage

$90,047
Sector-wide BLS OES median across 3 tracked occupations.

1. Employment Landscape

South Dakota ranks 43rd out of 51 U.S. states in storage & grid employment. At 340 workers, the state sits below the 25th-ranked Alabama’s tally by 712 jobs, and trails the national leader California by 18,969 storage & grid workers.

1.1 South Dakota’s position vs. the top 10 and median states

1st · California
19,309
25th · Alabama
1,051
43. South Dakota
340
51st · Delaware
86

1.2 Share of U.S. total

The storage & grid sector nationwide employs roughly 98,434 workers; South Dakota accounts for 340 of them.

1.3 Where South Dakota sits in its own mix

Sector Jobs (2024) National rank
Energy Efficiency 7,898 #45
Wind 1,831 #18
Solar 743 #46
Storage & Grid 340 #43
Electric Vehicles 327 #40
Clean Fuels 79 #43
Hydropower 65 #48

1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in South Dakota

Every storage & grid-related sub-category reported for South Dakota in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.

Transmission, distribution, and storage total
4,631
Traditional transmission and distribution
3,523
Other (including commodity flows)
565
Storage
340
Other grid modernization
78
Smart grid
63
Micro grid
61

2. Pay & Career Roles in South Dakota

South Dakota contributes 0.35% of the nation’s storage & grid workforce. Within South Dakota’s own clean-energy economy, storage & grid accounts for 3.0% of total clean-energy jobs (340 of 11,282 workers).

Cost-of-living in South Dakota is roughly 10.3% lower the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for storage & grid roles in South Dakota is shown alongside the national BLS figure.

RoleNational medianSouth Dakota-adjustedJob Zone
Electrical Engineer $107,890 $96,777 4
Electrical & Electronics Repairer, Powerhouse $95,270 $85,457 3
Electrical & Electronics Repairer, Commercial $66,980 $60,081 3

See all 3 storage & grid occupations with national wages and skills →

4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix

South Dakota employers rate 14.7% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 29.0% as “somewhat difficult”) — easier than the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 43.7% of South Dakota’s clean-energy roles see some level of hiring friction.

4.1 Employer hiring difficulty

Did not hire
49.1%
Somewhat difficult hiring
29.0%
Very difficult hiring
14.7%
Not at all difficult hiring
7.2%

4.2 Jobs by NAICS industry group

Industry (NAICS group)Jobs (2024)
Construction 9,080
Manufacturing 5,860
Trade 5,444
Other Services 3,922
Utilities 2,008
Professional Services 1,638
Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows 955
Agriculture and Forestry 622
Mining and Extraction 65

Frequently Asked Questions

How many storage & grid jobs are there in South Dakota?
As of 2024, South Dakota has approximately 340 storage & grid jobs — ranked 43rd nationally.
What do these jobs pay?
Median wages across the tracked storage & grid occupations range from $66,980 to $107,890 according to BLS OES.
Is South Dakota a good place to take one of these jobs?
South Dakota is currently relatively loose. Cost-of-living runs 10.3% below the U.S. average, which raises or lowers real take-home on a BLS national median by a similar amount.

Data source: U.S. Department of Energy — 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report (reflecting 2024 employment); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics; O*NET Occupation Database 29.1.

Last updated: April 2026.