15.8% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Timber Lake, SD (119 out of 754 people) live below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Males 12 - 14, followed by Males 55 - 64 and then Females 6 - 11.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Timber Lake, SD is Native American, followed by White and Asian.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.