Sioux Falls

Learn. Play. Live. Stay.

Sioux Falls is South Dakota's largest city, with an estimated population of nearly 220,000 residents as of early 2025. It is one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. and features a robust culture and economy, as well as countless options for adventure, entertainment, food and sought-after internship and clinical opportunities. Sioux Falls is a great place to learn, live, play and stay!

We Are Sioux Falls

Learn

For several consecutive years, Sioux Falls ranked as the Best City for Young Professionals in 2021, according to SmartAsset.
ZipRecruiter identified Sioux Falls as the third Hottest Job Market in 2020, based on the growing number of job postings and average number of job openings per job seeker as well as the median wage among other criteria.

Play

WalletHub ranked Sioux Falls as one of the Happiest Cities in America for 2025. Also, Sioux Falls was named among the Best-Run Cities.

Live & Stay

In 2024-25, Sioux Falls was named a Top 100 Place to Live in the U.S. by Livability, as well as the Top 25 Best Places to Live in the Midwest.

"Sioux Falls enchants residents with its friendly community, abundant parks and recreation options and a strong economy with ample job opportunities. Surrounded by the natural beauty of the Big Sioux River and rolling plains, it offers a serene setting to establish roots." — Livability

In 2024, Sioux Falls was ranked in theTop 50 for Places to Live for Families by Fortune.
Sioux Falls was named the Most Affordable City in America by Reader's Digest in 2023.

Augustana in Sioux Falls

Two-thousand-eighteen marked Augustana University's 100th anniversary in Sioux Falls. AU is proud of the mark it has made on the city over the last 100 years. As the university writes its next chapter, the possibilities are endless.

Milestone Events

In 1889, the Lutheran Normal School was built on four acres of land given by lawyer and land developer Richard F. Pettigrew, one of Sioux Falls’ founding fathers. Nearly 30 years later, the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America merged the Lutheran Normal School with Augustana College in Canton, to be known as Augustana College and Normal School. Sioux Falls city and business leaders lobbied hard for Augustana to relocate, and in 1918, Sioux Falls became Augustana’s permanent home.
In the last century, both the University and the city have prospered from our more humble beginnings. Sioux Falls grew from a town of 25,202 in 1920 to a city of 178,500 in 2017 — with a four-county metro area of 261,400 residents. Augustana has grown, as well, from 242 enrolled students in 1920 to the 2017-18 academic year, when we welcomed the largest incoming class since 1978 and total enrollment reached 2,080 — the largest since 1990.
Our campus has adapted with the changes in Sioux Falls, offering new and expanded undergraduate and graduate degree programs and athletics programs, as well as connecting businesses with students for internships and career opportunities. As we have invested in our infrastructure, we are grateful for the businesses and individuals who have invested in us and our students, such as the experiential learning opportunities and internships our students take part in, all because we have the benefit of being located in South Dakota’s largest city.

South Dakota Resources