EIA residential propane, South Dakota
South Dakota propane prices: $1.84 a gallon
Latest EIA residential survey, week ending 30 March 2026, the final release of the 2025-26 heating season. Weekly updates resume in October; the wholesale benchmark below is live.
A long, brutal heating season bought with some of the cheapest gallons in the country: PADD 2 storage and Bakken processing next door, a year-round crop-drying load that funds the routes, and no per-dealer licence lookup to vet a supplier with.
Latest EIA residential propane price
Source: EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program, South Dakota residential series. Refreshed automatically every Tuesday in season; wholesale daily.
South Dakota at a glance
Latest survey$1.84/gal
vs week beforeno change
vs 4 weeks before+1.2c
vs same week last year-8%
vs US ($2.67)31% below
Among 38 surveyed states4th cheapest
500-gal fill (400 usable)$736
Week by week, 2025-26 season
South Dakota against the US average
Every point is an EIA survey week. This season South Dakota ran from a low of $1.64 (6 Oct) to a high of $1.86 (9 Feb), with the US average finishing at $2.67. Against the same week a year earlier it is -8%.
$1.64
Season low
6 October 2025
$1.86
Season high
9 February 2026
$2.00
Same week last year
31 March 2025, now -8%
$0.85
Wholesale today
Mont Belvieu spot, 15 September 2026, +17c vs a month ago
Source: EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program, residential propane, full-service delivery, published October to March. Wholesale is the Mont Belvieu, TX spot price; retail usually follows it by four to eight weeks, which makes it the best off-season signal of where South Dakota prices are heading.
What a fill costs in South Dakota at $1.84
Tanks fill to 80% of their stated size to leave room for expansion, so a 500-gallon tank takes about 400 gallons. The right-hand column is the difference against the same fill at the US average.
| Tank | Usable gallons | Fill at $1.84 | vs US ($2.67) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 gal | 80 gal | $147 | -$67 |
| 250 gal | 200 gal | $368 | -$167 |
| 500 gal | 400 gal | $736 | -$334 |
| 1000 gal | 800 gal | $1472 | -$667 |
A South Dakota home heating on propane through a typical winter burns 1,000 to 1,500 gallons, so fuel alone runs about $1840 to $2760 at this price, before tank rent or a service plan. The average is a benchmark, not a quote: enter your ZIP to ask up to three local dealers what they would charge you.
South Dakota against its Midwest neighbours
The cheapest Midwest cluster (Nebraska, Iowa, the Dakotas, Kansas) hugs the Conway, Kansas storage hub and the central-plains network, with South Dakota right in that group. Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin sit a tier up, and Indiana and Ohio run higher still, further from Conway and carrying longer last-mile routes through more populated terrain.
| State | Price/gal | 500-gal fill | vs US ($2.67) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | $1.64 | $657 | -39% |
| Iowa | $1.66 | $664 | -38% |
| North Dakota | $1.70 | $680 | -36% |
| South Dakota | $1.84 | $736 | -31% |
| Kansas | $1.98 | $791 | -26% |
| Illinois | $2.03 | $810 | -24% |
| Minnesota | $2.06 | $822 | -23% |
| Wisconsin | $2.07 | $826 | -23% |
| Missouri | $2.21 | $884 | -17% |
| Michigan | $2.37 | $948 | -11% |
| Indiana | $2.63 | $1054 | -1% |
| Ohio | $2.69 | $1078 | +1% |
| Midwest average | $2.07 | $828 | -23% |
States marked regional est. are not surveyed individually by EIA and carry their PADD regional figure. Full table on prices by state.
Why South Dakota runs 31% under the national average
The reasons are structural, not a lucky week: supply geography, a year-round agricultural demand floor, and a metro base that runs on natural gas rather than propane.
PADD 2 storage and Bakken processing next door.
South Dakota sits inside PADD 2, the most propane-rich district in the country, anchored by the Conway, Kansas underground storage hub and fed by Bakken and Williston wet-gas processing just across the North Dakota line. Short pipeline-to-rail-to-truck distances mean the state rarely pays the long-haul transport premium that pushes Northeast and West Coast prices high.
A year-round agricultural demand floor.
Sunflower drying (South Dakota is consistently a top-three sunflower state), corn drying across the eastern counties, and cattle and dairy operations from the James River valley to the Black Hills create a baseline of ag propane demand a residential-only market never has. That load funds denser supplier routes, larger bulk-storage volumes per terminal and real competition between retailers, all of which flows through to lower per-gallon residential pricing.
The metros run on natural gas, not propane.
Sioux Falls is served by MidAmerican Energy natural gas and Rapid City by Black Hills Energy, which together cover most of the state's population. That leaves residential propane concentrated in rural counties, the Black Hills foothills and the nine reservations, where suppliers build their economics around the ag and seasonal-tourism load rather than chasing scattered houses, so per-gallon overhead stays manageable even on long routes.
Dispersed, but predictable, rural delivery.
West River South Dakota (Custer, Pennington, Lawrence, Meade, Fall River, Bennett, Oglala Lakota) is far less dense than East River, so routes are longer. But they are also predictable: nearly every farm and reservation household is on a known auto-fill schedule built around harvest, calving and winter heat. Predictable volume lets retailers price tighter than they could against a randomly distributed customer base, which offsets much of the distance penalty.
Buying propane well in South Dakota: four moves that decide the bill
A good shortlist is step one. In a rural, cold-winter state with no licence lookup to fall back on, the gap between a careless account and a well-run one runs to real money across a heating season. Here is where it is won.
01
Vet what you actually can
South Dakota has no consumer-facing per-dealer licence lookup. LP-gas safety runs through the State Fire Marshal (Department of Public Safety) under the state fire code's NFPA 58 adoption, and the only clearly public credential is the Department of Revenue LPG vendor licence, a motor-fuel tax registration. So vet on what exists: ask for a current liability insurance certificate and an itemised written quote before any tank is set. Hesitation on either is the walk-away signal.
02
Lock summer, fill before harvest
Midwest wholesale bottoms in late spring and summer, and most South Dakota suppliers run pre-buy and cap-price enrolment through that window. South Dakota adds a second lever the coasts do not have: fill before the crop-drying surge. Corn and sunflower dryers pull hard through the same retailers in October, so top up by late September. A cap-price contract keeps the saving if wholesale falls; a strict pre-buy locks the price either way. Ask whether unused prepaid gallons roll forward.
03
Quote three tiers, and the co-op
South Dakota runs a real three-tier market plus a farm-co-op layer the coasts lack: national carriers, regional operators with in-state bulk storage, family independents, and ag cooperatives that already run bulk routes past your road. In rural counties the spread between the cheapest local and the priciest national quote is wide, so pull one written quote from each. If you own your tank, say so up front, because it removes the switching penalty leased-tank customers face.
04
Check LIEAP eligibility early
South Dakota's Low Income Energy Assistance Program, run by DSS, pays a heating benefit straight to your propane supplier for the October to May season. Eligibility runs on household size and income (broadly 200% of the Federal Poverty Guideline for one to three people, 60% of State Median Income for four to eleven). Funds are first-come, so apply in October at dss.sd.gov or call the Office of Energy Assistance on 605-773-3165.
Rated by customers
South Dakota propane dealers worth calling first
A short, hand-checked list with strong public review scores, spread across the state. Ratings were read from the platforms named in August 2026 and move over time; a high score is where to start, not a guarantee. Get three written quotes whoever you call.
East River / Sioux Falls metro
AB Propane
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
4.930 reviews, Birdeye
Independent Sioux Falls supplier running residential propane delivery, gas line and tank installation, cylinder and camper refills, and equipment service across the southeast metro.
See the reviews ›West River / Black Hills
McGas Propane
Sturgis, South Dakota
4.8194 reviews, Birdeye
Third-generation Black Hills operator serving Sturgis, Rapid City, Belle Fourche, Deadwood, Hot Springs, Custer and New Underwood with bulk delivery and tank leasing since 1939.
See the reviews ›South Dakota propane, the questions people ask
How much does propane cost per gallon in South Dakota?
South Dakota residential propane averages $1.84 a gallon in the latest EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program (SHOPP) survey. That is 31% below the $2.67 national average and sits against a $2.07 Midwest regional average, which makes South Dakota one of the cheapest residential propane markets in the country. The figure is a statewide retail average; what you actually pay turns on your county, contract type (will-call, auto-fill, pre-buy or cap-price), whether you own or rent your tank, and how far you sit off a dealer route. West River and far East River quotes on the same EIA week can differ by a meaningful margin.
Does South Dakota list every licensed propane dealer somewhere I can search?
No, and we will not fake one. South Dakota does not publish a consumer-facing, browsable per-dealer LP-gas licence lookup the way Texas, Florida or North Carolina do, so this page carries no full state dealer directory. LP-gas safety in South Dakota is overseen by the Office of the State Fire Marshal, a division of the Department of Public Safety, through the state fire code's adoption of NFPA 58 (the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Code). The one clearly public state credential most sellers hold is the South Dakota Department of Revenue LPG vendor licence, which is a motor-fuel tax registration rather than a safety or service rating. What we offer instead is a hand-checked shortlist of well-reviewed operators, and for the rural and northern stretches where public review counts are too thin to rank fairly, a rating-free list of real operators worth a call: North Star Energy (Aberdeen), Agtegra Cooperative propane (Aberdeen), Performance Oil (Aberdeen), Olson Propane (Buffalo, serving Harding County and the northern Black Hills) and Lakes Gas, the Upper Midwest regional carrier with South Dakota routes. Those five are not rated here, so confirm current service, insurance and pricing before you commit. For your exact town, use the ZIP finder.
With no licence lookup, how do I vet a South Dakota propane dealer?
Lean on the checks that do exist. Ask for a current certificate of general liability insurance before any tank is set or filled; a dealer who hesitates on that is the walk-away signal. Insist on an itemised written quote that breaks out the per-gallon price, delivery fee, tank rental if any, minimum-delivery surcharge and any monthly tank fee, because per-gallon spreads of thirty to fifty cents inside the same county are common. Membership of the South Dakota Petroleum and Propane Marketers Association (SDP2MA) is a reasonable credibility signal, not a substitute for the insurance certificate. For a safety concern about an installation or a tank, the State Fire Marshal at the Department of Public Safety (dps.sd.gov) is the escalation path.
Does LIEAP help pay for propane in South Dakota, and who qualifies?
Yes. South Dakota's Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) is administered by the Department of Social Services (DSS), Office of Energy Assistance in Pierre. Eligibility runs on household size, income, heating type and where you live: broadly, income within 200% of the Federal Poverty Guideline for households of one to three, 60% of State Median Income for households of four to eleven, and 150% of the Federal Poverty Guideline for twelve or more. Benefits are paid directly to your propane supplier toward the October 1 to May 15 heating period, and funds distribute first-come, so apply in October rather than waiting for the January queue. Apply online at dss.sd.gov, through your county DSS office, or by contacting the Office of Energy Assistance at 605-773-3165; the status line is 1-800-233-8503. The Energy Crisis Intervention Program covers emergencies such as a disconnect notice or a near-empty tank in deep winter.
Why is South Dakota propane so cheap relative to the national average?
Three structural reasons, none of them seasonal. First, South Dakota sits inside PADD 2 (Midwest), the most propane-rich district in the country, anchored by the Conway, Kansas storage hub and fed by Bakken and Williston wet-gas processing just across the North Dakota line, so the state rarely pays the long-haul transport premium the Northeast and West Coast absorb. Second, agricultural propane is a year-round demand floor: sunflower drying (South Dakota is consistently a top-three sunflower state), corn drying across the eastern counties, and cattle and dairy operations from the James River valley to the Black Hills all support denser supplier routes and bigger bulk-storage volumes than a residential-only market would. Third, Sioux Falls and Rapid City run largely on natural gas (MidAmerican Energy and Black Hills Energy), which leaves residential propane concentrated in rural and reservation markets where routes are designed around the predictable ag load. Together those hold South Dakota at $1.84 against a $2.67 national average.
How does sunflower and corn drying affect propane supply in South Dakota?
South Dakota is consistently a top-three sunflower producer and a top-ten corn state, and both crops often need supplemental drying after a wet harvest. Propane fires the dryers, and October into early November can pull tens of millions of gallons through the same ag retailers that serve homes, which tightens residential supply on the same trucks. Two practical moves for households. First, fill before harvest pressure hits, by late September at the latest; a tank below 30% in early October during a wet year can wait two or three weeks for a residential delivery while ag demand clears. Second, the East River corn-dryer counties (Brookings, Hutchinson, Hanson, Beadle, Spink) feel the squeeze hardest, while West River households see less harvest-season pricing pressure but more weather-related delivery risk in the Black Hills.
How does propane work on South Dakota's Native American reservations?
Propane is often the only practical heating fuel on Pine Ridge, Rosebud, Cheyenne River, Standing Rock, Yankton, Crow Creek, Lower Brule, Flandreau and Sisseton-Wahpeton lands: natural gas is essentially absent, electric heat is impractical in a twenty-below cold snap, and wood is supplemental at best. LIEAP through DSS applies to tribal members, and tribal energy-assistance and weatherisation programmes run alongside it through Community Action partners and tribal social-services offices. Some households have historically bought from cylinder-exchange networks at materially higher per-gallon equivalents than bulk delivery. If you are on or near a reservation and paying a large premium for cylinder swaps, ask a bulk dealer whether delivery to a 100 or 250-gallon tank is feasible, and whether LIEAP plus tribal weatherisation can fund the install.
How should I prepare my propane system for a South Dakota winter?
Rapid City, Pierre, Aberdeen, Sioux Falls and the rural James River valley all see multi-week stretches of sub-zero highs, with periodic Arctic blasts that push thirty below. Three rules. First, never let your tank drop below 30% between November and March; that is the threshold where an auto-delivery route can still reach you ahead of a crisis. Second, keep the tank pad clear of snow and the regulator vent unobstructed, because a frosted-over regulator in deep cold is the most common no-heat call in the state. Third, schedule a system pressure check and leak test in September, when a small fault is cheap to fix rather than an emergency in February. If you are on will-call rather than auto-fill, set a reminder at 40% rather than 25%, because route times stretch from a couple of days off-peak to a week or more during a January cold snap.
Keep reading
All South Dakota dealers
South Dakota propane dealers by city and ZIP.
Dealers near you
Enter a ZIP to see the closest dealers and ask up to three for a price.
Propane prices today
The daily wholesale benchmark and the live state summer surveys.
Prices by state
All 50 states side by side, with regional context.
What a fill costs
Tank sizes, the 80% rule and the national refill guide.
How to pay less
Pre-buy timing, switching, owned versus leased tanks.
Cost calculator
Apply South Dakota pricing to your home, climate and usage profile.