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ZipVitals

ZIP code

57421

in Amherst, South DakotaPopulation 75

Score not computed — limited data for this ZIP.

Because no Score is computed, this ZIP doesn't appear in the state, metro, or national rankings.

What defines this ZIP

Metrics where this ZIP sits in the tails of the national distribution — the ones that most set it apart. Select any tile for its definition and methodology.

Slow internet speeds

11.8%

in the top 1.3% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST98th
US99th
Definition & source ›

The share of homes whose fastest available download speed is under 10 Mbps.

Full methodology ›

Lithium in drinking water

130 µg/L

in the top 1.6% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST96th
US98th
Definition & source ›

The average detected level of lithium — a natural trace metal with no federal drinking-water limit yet — across the public water systems serving this ZIP, in micrograms per liter.

Measured from EPA records for the public water systems that serve this ZIP. Households on private wells — roughly 30% of the US population — are not covered by this measure, and this figure says nothing about their water.

Full methodology ›

Housing-cost burden

0.00%

at the national minimum

Lower is healthier

ST1st
US1st
Definition & source ›

The share of households spending 30% or more of their income on housing.

Full methodology ›

Poverty rate

0.00%

at the national minimum

Lower is healthier

ST1st
US1st
Definition & source ›

The share of residents whose income is below the federal poverty line, from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

Full methodology ›

Homeownership rate

100%

at the national maximum

Higher is healthier

ST99th
US99th
Definition & source ›

The share of occupied homes that are owned, rather than rented, by the people living in them.

Full methodology ›

Distance to a Superfund site

121.9 mi

in the top 2.7% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST68th
US97th
Definition & source ›

The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest Superfund site — an abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous-waste site the EPA has listed for cleanup.

Full methodology ›

Home broadband subscription

100%

at the national maximum

Higher is healthier

ST99th
US99th
Definition & source ›

The share of households with a broadband internet subscription.

Full methodology ›

Energy-cost burden

5.9%

in the top 3.2% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST90th
US97th
Definition & source ›

The modeled share of household income spent on home energy bills — electricity, gas, and heating fuels.

A modeled share of household income spent on home energy. Estimates that hit the model’s 100% ceiling are suppressed rather than published, because at that point the figure reflects the model’s limit rather than a measured burden.

Full methodology ›

Distance to a community health center

29.2 mi

in the top 4.3% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST80th
US96th
Definition & source ›

The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest federally funded community health center, which serves patients regardless of ability to pay.

Full methodology ›

Walkability

1.4 intersections/sq mi

in the bottom 4.4% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST40th
US4th
Definition & source ›

The number of street intersections per square mile — a standard street-connectivity measure; denser networks correlate with more walkable neighborhoods.

Full methodology ›

Cross-source signals

Combined exposures in this ZIP

More than one environmental exposure stands out in this ZIP. Each is established independently and shown on its own above; they are grouped here for context — not because one causes the other.

The read

With the picture still incomplete, for Amherst, South Dakota (ZIP 57421), health standing is not ranked here — the available data is too limited to place it confidently.

continue reading

Where the data does reach, it says a few things here: housing-cost burden lies at the national minimum, poverty settles at the national minimum, and homeownership stands at the national maximum. Distance to a Superfund site is in the top 2.7% nationally, and home broadband subscription rests at the national maximum. Set against that, slow internet speeds sits in the top 1.3% nationally, and lithium in drinking water registers in the top 1.6% nationally. Modeled energy burden lands in the top 3.2% nationally, and distance to a community health center resides in the top 4.3% nationally. Walkability lies in the bottom 4.4% nationally.

Set against the neighboring ZIPs, slow internet speeds runs far higher than the surrounding ZIPs on this measure. In everyday language, lithium in drinking water is a natural metal that dissolves into some groundwater and has no federal drinking-water limit yet. Distance to a Superfund site is an abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous-waste site the EPA has identified for cleanup. Energy burden is the share of household income that goes to home energy bills.

Evidence

Every measure this page draws on, by source. Collapsed by default — the full data stays in the page for search engines either way.

Health outcomes & behaviorCDC PLACES

No PLACES data is available for this ZIP yet.

Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
MeasureValueUS median (p10–p90)SD median (p10–p90)
Poverty rate0.0%10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,3648.8% (1.1–33.5%) n=364
Uninsured 18–640.0%9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,2869.6% (0.0–33.2%) n=365
No HS diploma (25+)0.0%7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,5056.0% (0.8–15.3%) n=366
Bachelor's or higher (25+)90.9%23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,50524.6% (10.3–40.7%) n=366
Unemployment rate (16+)0.0%3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,2741.1% (0.0–8.0%) n=365
Households without a vehicle0.0%3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,3221.9% (0.0–9.6%) n=364
Broadband subscription100.0%89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,32287.9% (73.7–96.3%) n=364
Housing cost burden (≥30% income)0.0%23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,32217.5% (5.2–30.6%) n=364
Homeownership rate100.0%78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,32279.9% (57.2–94.8%) n=364
Crowded housing (>1 per room)0.0%1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,3220.6% (0.0–10.2%) n=364
Foreign-born population0.0%2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,5530.6% (0.0–5.3%) n=367
Single-parent households16.7%53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,08756.7% (32.7–81.4%) n=362
Population 65+4.0%19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,55320.3% (8.4–33.0%) n=367
Median age16.6 yr42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,29241.5 yr (27.6–56.7) n=365
Median household income$72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318$74,865 ($51,211–$102,582) n=336
Median home value$222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049$177,400 ($79,000–$321,400) n=311
Median gross rent$1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670$763 ($544–$1,089) n=243
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
MeasureValueUS median (p10–p90)SD median (p10–p90)
Life expectancy unavailable for this ZIP — fewer than 80% of the census tracts that make it up could be matched across the 2010→2020 tract-boundary revision, so no value is published rather than an unreliable one. See how coverage gaps are handled.
More ZIPs to explore ▾

How these lists were built: they draw only from ZIPs that have a published Score, so ZIPs with too little data to score are not listed. Distance-based lists use distance between ZIP boundaries with no state filter, so an out-of-state ZIP can appear. How distance is measured