Relocation

Compare Black Hills Communities

25 towns and unincorporated communities. Pick two to four and the full table appears underneath. Commutes are driving times to the Ellsworth main gate and downtown Rapid City. Median sold prices, where we have them, come from the MLS over the trailing twelve months with the source, window and sale count printed under each figure. Typical price bands are practical search ranges, not medians, and are labelled separately.

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Under $400k Close to Ellsworth Close to Rapid City Short commute New construction available Acreage available City water and sewer Smaller market More rural Established housing Newer housing Clear filters Clear everything

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What changes

Between Spearfish, Buffalo Gap, Edgemont

The rows below are the ones where these do not read the same. Ordered as the table runs, not by importance.

Region: SpearfishNorthern Hills and I-90Buffalo GapCentral and Southern HillsEdgemontCentral and Southern Hills
County: SpearfishLawrence CountyBuffalo GapCuster CountyEdgemontFall River County
Jurisdiction: SpearfishNot recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.Buffalo GapIncorporated town of Buffalo Gap, with Custer County outside the limits.EdgemontIncorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.
Corridor: SpearfishI-90Buffalo GapSD 79EdgemontUS 18 and SD 471
To downtown Rapid City: Spearfish53 min, 47.8 miBuffalo GapAbout 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesEdgemontAbout 100 miles northeast
To Ellsworth AFB: Spearfish68 min, 57.0 miBuffalo GapAbout 55 milesEdgemontAbout 110 miles

Side by side

Spearfish, Buffalo Gap, Edgemont

Rows marked as differing are the ones where these do not read alike. Rows without the mark sit on a quiet background because they say the same thing in every column.

The selected Black Hills communities compared on location, housing, utilities, schools, daily errands, mapped subdivisions and the trade each one asks for
Attribute	Northern Hills and I-90Spearfish	Central and Southern HillsBuffalo Gap	Central and Southern HillsEdgemont
Where it sits
Regiondiffers	Northern Hills and I-90	Central and Southern Hills	Central and Southern Hills
Countydiffers	Lawrence County	Custer County	Fall River County
JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.	Incorporated town of Buffalo Gap, with Custer County outside the limits.	Incorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.
Corridordiffers	I-90	SD 79	US 18 and SD 471
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers	53 min, 47.8 miDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers	68 min, 57.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 55 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.	About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Winter drivingdiffers	Chinook winds off the hills are a genuine feature of winter in this corridor.	Highway 79 is state maintained and is the connection to Hot Springs and Rapid City. Off it, this is open prairie with blowing snow.	Cold semi-arid country with a recorded low of 40 below. US 18 is the lifeline and it is a long way to anywhere in a storm.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers	$400k to $600kMedian sold $475,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 199 closed sales.	One single family sale shows in the Black Hills MLS over 24 months, at $80,000. One closing is a sample of one rather than a price level, so read it that way.	About $155,000 average sold, 13 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $155,285. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 13 closed sales.
Housing agediffers	Older stock in the middle, edge subdivisions built 1996 to 2023	An 1885 to 1939 historic core with an aging housing stock and about a fifth of units vacant.	An 1890 railroad town, so mostly older stock, with about a quarter of units vacant at the 2020 count.
New constructiondiffers	New construction remains active on the edges of town, including areas such as Sky Ridge and other newer developments.	None underway	None underway
Acreagediffers	Acreage is available around Spearfish, primarily on surrounding Lawrence County ground rather than in the city core.	Acreage parcels are common here	Acreage parcels are common here
Typical lotdiffers	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.	A handful of historic townsite lots, with grassland and ranch ground around them.	Town lots inside the limits, ranch scale outside them.
Covenants and HOAdiffersCovenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel.	Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others	Few plats here carry recorded covenants	Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Utilities and rules
Utility patterndiffers	City water and sewer are typical inside city-served areas. Acreage outside the city can use wells, septic systems or other service arrangements, so utilities should be confirmed by address.	Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it	City water and sewer inside the limits
Waterdiffers	City water inside the Spearfish limits. Acreage outside the limits runs on a private well or a rural water district.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.	Town of Buffalo Gap municipal water from a single well, serving about 93 connections. Rural parcels are on private wells.	City of Edgemont municipal water. Rural parcels are on private wells.
Sewerdiffers	City sewer inside the Spearfish limits, private septic on acreage outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.	Not documented in the public record. There is no municipal wastewater project or discharge permit on file that I could find. Confirm with the town finance officer before assuming either town sewer or septic.	City sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.
Short term rentalsdiffers	The city studied rules in 2023 and 2024 and maintains an official short term rental page. Verify the current ordinance first.	This is hunting and grassland country rather than a tourism corridor. Demand is seasonal and specific.	Edgemont is not a tourism town. Short-term rental demand here is work crews, hunting season and Rally traffic passing through, not visitors staying to see something.
Schools
School districtdiffers	Spearfish School District 40-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Hot Springs School District 23-2, despite the town being in Custer CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Daily errands
Groceriesdiffers	Full-service grocery options in town include Walmart, Safeway and Lueders Food Centers.	Nothing full service in town. Hot Springs, about 14 miles south, is where errands happen.	Small-town grocery and convenience in Edgemont, with Hot Springs about 35 miles east for more.
Healthcarediffers	Monument Health Spearfish Hospital and outpatient clinics are in town.	Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs, a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department and a rural health clinic, about 18 minutes away.	No hospital in town. Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs is a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department.
Recreationdiffers	D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery, Black Hills State University events, and Terry Peak and Deadwood a short drive south.	Buffalo Gap National Grassland, hunting, rock collecting and OHV country, with the Cheyenne River nearby.	The hundred-year-old city park, the campground, the Elk Mountains and open country in every direction.
Mapped subdivisions
Outlines on filediffers	25 mapped outlines, 13 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
The trade
Housing and patterndiffers	A university town with a walkable middle, growing fast enough that new construction has moved to the edges.	A nearly intact turn-of-the-century western streetscape on the National Register, mostly quiet, at the gate to the grassland.	A working BNSF crew-change town founded in 1890, at the far southern edge of the Hills below the Elk Mountains.
What you gaindiffers	A downtown you can walk across, Black Hills State and Spearfish Canyon out the back door, on city water and sewer.	Eighteen minutes from the hospital in Hot Springs, with 600,000 acres of grassland out the door and one MLS closing in two years to price from.	More town per dollar than anywhere else in the region, with its own school district and city utilities.
What you give updiffers	The highest median sold price of the region's higher volume markets at $475,000 across 199 sales, and Rapid City is 53 minutes on the interstate with the Ellsworth gate 68.	No school, no store and no services in town, an aging water system with an open compliance item, and an undocumented sewer situation.	A hundred miles from Rapid City, 35 from a hospital, with two unresolved questions hanging over the local economy.

Northern Hills and I-90Spearfish
Central and Southern HillsBuffalo Gap
Central and Southern HillsEdgemont

Where it sits

Regiondiffers

Spearfish: Northern Hills and I-90
Buffalo Gap: Central and Southern Hills
Edgemont: Central and Southern Hills

Countydiffers

Spearfish: Lawrence County
Buffalo Gap: Custer County
Edgemont: Fall River County

Jurisdictiondiffers

City versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.

Spearfish: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
Buffalo Gap: Incorporated town of Buffalo Gap, with Custer County outside the limits.
Edgemont: Incorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.

Corridordiffers

Spearfish: I-90
Buffalo Gap: SD 79
Edgemont: US 18 and SD 471

To downtown Rapid Citydiffers

Spearfish: 53 min, 47.8 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Buffalo Gap: About 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Edgemont: About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.

To Ellsworth AFBdiffers

Spearfish: 68 min, 57.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Buffalo Gap: About 55 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Edgemont: About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.

Winter drivingdiffers

Spearfish: Chinook winds off the hills are a genuine feature of winter in this corridor.
Buffalo Gap: Highway 79 is state maintained and is the connection to Hot Springs and Rapid City. Off it, this is open prairie with blowing snow.
Edgemont: Cold semi-arid country with a recorded low of 40 below. US 18 is the lifeline and it is a long way to anywhere in a storm.

Housing and lots

Typical pricediffers

Spearfish: $400k to $600kMedian sold $475,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 199 closed sales.
Buffalo Gap: One single family sale shows in the Black Hills MLS over 24 months, at $80,000. One closing is a sample of one rather than a price level, so read it that way.
Edgemont: About $155,000 average sold, 13 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $155,285. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 13 closed sales.

Housing agediffers

Spearfish: Older stock in the middle, edge subdivisions built 1996 to 2023
Buffalo Gap: An 1885 to 1939 historic core with an aging housing stock and about a fifth of units vacant.
Edgemont: An 1890 railroad town, so mostly older stock, with about a quarter of units vacant at the 2020 count.

New constructiondiffers

Spearfish: New construction remains active on the edges of town, including areas such as Sky Ridge and other newer developments.
Buffalo Gap: None underway
Edgemont: None underway

Acreagediffers

Spearfish: Acreage is available around Spearfish, primarily on surrounding Lawrence County ground rather than in the city core.
Buffalo Gap: Acreage parcels are common here
Edgemont: Acreage parcels are common here

Typical lotdiffers

Spearfish: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.
Buffalo Gap: A handful of historic townsite lots, with grassland and ranch ground around them.
Edgemont: Town lots inside the limits, ranch scale outside them.

Covenants and HOAdiffers

Covenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel.

Spearfish: Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others
Buffalo Gap: Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Edgemont: Few plats here carry recorded covenants

Utilities and rules

Utility patterndiffers

Spearfish: City water and sewer are typical inside city-served areas. Acreage outside the city can use wells, septic systems or other service arrangements, so utilities should be confirmed by address.
Buffalo Gap: Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
Edgemont: City water and sewer inside the limits

Waterdiffers

Spearfish: City water inside the Spearfish limits. Acreage outside the limits runs on a private well or a rural water district.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.
Buffalo Gap: Town of Buffalo Gap municipal water from a single well, serving about 93 connections. Rural parcels are on private wells.
Edgemont: City of Edgemont municipal water. Rural parcels are on private wells.

Sewerdiffers

Spearfish: City sewer inside the Spearfish limits, private septic on acreage outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.
Buffalo Gap: Not documented in the public record. There is no municipal wastewater project or discharge permit on file that I could find. Confirm with the town finance officer before assuming either town sewer or septic.
Edgemont: City sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.

Short term rentalsdiffers

Spearfish: The city studied rules in 2023 and 2024 and maintains an official short term rental page. Verify the current ordinance first.
Buffalo Gap: This is hunting and grassland country rather than a tourism corridor. Demand is seasonal and specific.
Edgemont: Edgemont is not a tourism town. Short-term rental demand here is work crews, hunting season and Rally traffic passing through, not visitors staying to see something.

Schools

School districtdiffers

Spearfish: Spearfish School District 40-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Buffalo Gap: Hot Springs School District 23-2, despite the town being in Custer CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Edgemont: Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.

Daily errands

Groceriesdiffers

Spearfish: Full-service grocery options in town include Walmart, Safeway and Lueders Food Centers.
Buffalo Gap: Nothing full service in town. Hot Springs, about 14 miles south, is where errands happen.
Edgemont: Small-town grocery and convenience in Edgemont, with Hot Springs about 35 miles east for more.

Healthcarediffers

Spearfish: Monument Health Spearfish Hospital and outpatient clinics are in town.
Buffalo Gap: Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs, a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department and a rural health clinic, about 18 minutes away.
Edgemont: No hospital in town. Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs is a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department.

Recreationdiffers

Spearfish: D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery, Black Hills State University events, and Terry Peak and Deadwood a short drive south.
Buffalo Gap: Buffalo Gap National Grassland, hunting, rock collecting and OHV country, with the Cheyenne River nearby.
Edgemont: The hundred-year-old city park, the campground, the Elk Mountains and open country in every direction.

Mapped subdivisions

Outlines on filediffers

Spearfish: 25 mapped outlines, 13 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
Buffalo Gap: No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
Edgemont: No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.

The trade

Housing and patterndiffers

Spearfish: A university town with a walkable middle, growing fast enough that new construction has moved to the edges.
Buffalo Gap: A nearly intact turn-of-the-century western streetscape on the National Register, mostly quiet, at the gate to the grassland.
Edgemont: A working BNSF crew-change town founded in 1890, at the far southern edge of the Hills below the Elk Mountains.

What you gaindiffers

Spearfish: A downtown you can walk across, Black Hills State and Spearfish Canyon out the back door, on city water and sewer.
Buffalo Gap: Eighteen minutes from the hospital in Hot Springs, with 600,000 acres of grassland out the door and one MLS closing in two years to price from.
Edgemont: More town per dollar than anywhere else in the region, with its own school district and city utilities.

What you give updiffers

Spearfish: The highest median sold price of the region's higher volume markets at $475,000 across 199 sales, and Rapid City is 53 minutes on the interstate with the Ellsworth gate 68.
Buffalo Gap: No school, no store and no services in town, an aging water system with an open compliance item, and an undocumented sewer situation.
Edgemont: A hundred miles from Rapid City, 35 from a hospital, with two unresolved questions hanging over the local economy.

Where this comes from

Commute figures are driving times off peak, from the community guide each card links to. Median sold prices come from the MLS, and each figure carries its own source, window and closing count, because Sturgis, Spearfish and the northern hills report through a different MLS than Rapid City. Under five closings there is no median, and the price row says so. Five to nine closings carries a small sample note. School districts follow the official boundary for the address, and the district office is the only place to confirm an assignment. Short term rental lines are summaries. Read the guide and the current ordinance before you count on rental income.

The filters use these definitions: under $400k is the MLS sold figure for the town, a median where one is published and otherwise the average sold, comes in under $400,000; close to ellsworth is 25 minutes or less to the Ellsworth main gate; close to rapid city is 20 minutes or less to downtown Rapid City; short commute is 15 minutes or less to either downtown Rapid City or the Ellsworth gate; new construction available is the guide establishes active or limited new construction; acreage available is acreage is common or present in the guide; city water and sewer is city water and sewer across the community; smaller market is fewer than 100 closed single family sales in the trailing twelve months; more rural is acreage is common, or water and sewer are not municipal throughout; established housing is the guide classifies the housing stock as established, meaning largely pre 2000; newer housing is the guide classifies a meaningful share of the housing stock as 2000s or later.

Every row here is a townwide summary and a single parcel can read differently. Buyer due diligence should include verifying water and sewer service, school assignment, recorded covenants and HOA obligations, rental rules, legal access, insurance availability and which jurisdiction inspects and permits the work, for the exact address. Confirm with the city or county, the utility or district, the school district office, the title company and your insurer as applicable.

Last updated August 2026

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ComparingSpearfish, Buffalo Gap, Edgemont

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