Tools · Window Tint

South Dakota Window Tint Checker (2026)

The legal tint limit for every window position in South Dakota (35% on the front sides), checked against your own film's VLT, with the medical exemption and what a ticket costs.

Reviewed by PlainStatute EditorialLast reviewed July 2026Verified against §32-15-2.4, -2.5, -2.9

South Dakota window tint checker

Window tint · South Dakota

State

Your tint's VLT (optional)

VLT (visible light transmission) is the share of light the film lets through; a lower number is darker. It is printed on the film packaging or your installation receipt. Leave it blank to just read the limits.

South Dakota legal tint limit, window by window

Front side windows

35% VLT min

At least 35% combined light transmittance on the front windshield, side wing vents, and front side windows; a 9% enforcement tolerance applies.

Back side windows

20% min

At least 20% light transmission on windows behind the operator’s seat; a 9% enforcement tolerance applies.

Rear window

20% min

At least 20% light transmission; the statute treats the rear window as one of the windows behind the operator’s seat, with a 9% enforcement tolerance.

Windshield

AS-1 / sun visor line

No sunscreening device may obstruct or reduce the driver’s clear view. Film may not extend below the AS-1 line or below the lowest point of the sun visor. Any film on the windshield still counts toward the combined 35% front limit..

Medical exemption

South Dakota provides no medical tint exemption. Chapter 32-15 contains no physician-affidavit path, waiver, or alternative VLT standard for a medical condition, and the Department of Public Safety issues no tint exemption permit.

Penalty

Each tint violation (front windshield or side windows, rear windows, or windshield film below the AS-1 line) is a Class 2 misdemeanor. In South Dakota a Class 2 misdemeanor carries up to 30 days in jail, a $500 fine, or both.

Tint-meter tolerance

9% enforcement tolerance written into both the 35% and 20% standards

Enter your film's VLT above to check it against each South Dakota window limit, or read the limits as they stand.

South Dakota measures the front windshield and front side windows as a combined level, so factory glass tint counts toward the 35% (§32-15-2.4). A 9% enforcement tolerance is built into both the 35% and 20% limits.

Film is sold by its own VLT, but police measure the installed darkness: the film combined with your factory glass, which reads darker than the film alone. These are the South Dakota figures stated as information, not a determination about any stop or ticket.

Informational only, not legal advice. Reflectivity limits, color bans, and vehicle-class exceptions can change the answer for a specific car. See the full rules, the exemption steps, and the citations on the South Dakota window tint reference, cited to SDCL §32-15-2.4, -2.5, -2.9.

How the South Dakota tint rules work

South Dakota splits the car in two. Up front, the windshield and side windows next to the driver have to reach a combined 35% light, and because it is a combined figure the factory glass counts against you before any film goes on. Behind the driver’s seat the floor drops to 20%. Both numbers come with a generous 9% enforcement tolerance built right into the statute, which is unusual. The windshield itself can only carry film above the AS-1 line or the bottom of the sun visor.

This checker applies the South Dakota figures to the VLT you enter. It is informational only and not legal advice: reflectivity limits, color bans, and vehicle-class exceptions can change the answer for a specific car. For the full rules, the shades table, and the citations, see the South Dakota window tint reference, cited to SDCL §32-15-2.4, -2.5, -2.9.

Window tint checkers for other states

Same tool, each with its own per-window limits.

South Dakota Window Tint Checker (2026)

South Dakota window tint checker

How the South Dakota tint rules work

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