North Dakota vs South Dakota – a comparison

North Dakota and South Dakota are two states in the Midwestern United States. Both these states are sparsely populated and have enormous natural beauty. The following is a comparison between North Dakota and South Dakota. Let’s read.

North Dakota vs South Dakota – a comparison

	North Dakota	South Dakota
Area	about 70,705 square miles	about 77,115 square miles
Area rank	19th	17th
Population	779,094 (2020)	886,667 (2020)
Became a state of the US	November 2, 1889	November 2, 1889
Bordering US states	Minnesota in the east, Montana in the west, and South Dakota in the south	Minnesota and Iowa in the east, Wyoming and Montana in the west, North Dakota in the north, and Nebraska in the south.
International border	Yes with Canada	No international border
Highest natural point	White Butte (3,508 ft/1,069 meters)	Black Elk Peak (7,244 ft/2,208 meters)
Largest lake	Lake Sakakawea	Lake Oahe
Capital city	Bismarck	Pierre
Largest city	Fargo	Sioux Falls
Nickname	Peace Garden State, Roughrider State, Flickertail State	The Mount Rushmore State
Number of National Parks	1 (Theodore Roosevelt National Park)	2 (Badlands National Park, Wind Cave National Park)
Number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites	0	0

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North Dakota state symbols

Honorary State Equine	Nokota Horse
State bird	Western meadowlark
State fish	Northern pike
State flower	Wild prairie rose
State tree	American elm
State grass	Western wheatgrass
State fruit	Chokecherry (bitter-berry)
State beverage	Milk
State fossil	Teredo petrified wood
State insect	Convergent lady beetle

South Dakota state symbols

State animal	Coyote
State bird	Ring-necked pheasant
State fish	Walleye
State flower	American pasque
State tree	Black hills spruce
State grass	Western wheatgrass
State drink	Milk
State fossil	Triceratops
State insect	Honeybee

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