New to the idea? Can you get married online? See how it works in all 50 states — then read on for everything specific to South Dakota.

The South Dakota way to marry has two sticking points couples don't expect: both partners must sign the application in person at a county register of deeds, and the ceremony must happen in front of two witnesses whose names and home addresses get written onto the license. Here is the good news: you can sidestep every bit of that and get fully, legally married online from anywhere in South Dakota. You apply for a marriage license over the internet and hold the ceremony by video — entirely online — through Utah, and South Dakota recognizes the result in full. The one nuance is that South Dakota's own license is in-person only: under South Dakota Codified Law Chapter 25-1, each applicant must sign the application in person before a county register of deeds, and the marriage must be solemnized in front of two witnesses. So the online license you get is a Utah one — valid in South Dakota.

Here is how that fully online route works: a video ceremony on a Utah marriage license. Utah has no residency requirement, so South Dakota couples qualify, and under the U.S. Constitution's Full Faith and Credit Clause the resulting certificate is valid in South Dakota for every purpose. The rest of this page lays both routes side by side — the register-of-deeds trip versus the video call — so a Sioux Falls or Rapid City couple can judge which one actually fits their week.

For the full national picture, see our complete guide to whether online marriage is legal and how the Utah process is recognized in all 50 states under the Full Faith and Credit Clause.

South Dakota is a state built around distance. It is roughly 380 miles from Sioux Falls in the southeast to the Wyoming line past Rapid City, and 66 counties are spread across that span — many register of deeds offices keep small-town hours and close over the lunch break. Add Ellsworth Air Force Base outside Rapid City, ranch and harvest schedules, brutal winter driving across the open prairie, and the South Dakota residents who winter elsewhere, and a lot of couples simply cannot get both partners standing in a county office during business hours. The Utah video route is usually the only practical path to a legal marriage for them.

How South Dakota Residents Get Married Online

A South Dakota marriage license is issued only in person: each partner signs the application before a county register of deeds, presents valid photo ID (a driver's license, or a certified birth certificate as proof of age), and pays a $40 fee that is the same in every county. There is no waiting period and no blood test. The license is valid for 90 days, and the marriage must be solemnized in front of two witnesses whose names and residences are recorded on the license. None of this can be done online. The online alternative is a Utah license plus a Utah video ceremony, which is valid in South Dakota under the Full Faith and Credit Clause.