STURGIS S.D. – Early vendor licensing numbers for the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally show a broad decline across multiple commercial categories compared to the same tracking period last year.

Official state data recorded on Aug. 3, 2026, indicates lower registration figures in nearly every sector when compared against figures from July 29, 2025.

Food vendor registrations experienced one of the sharpest drops, falling from 41 licenses in late July 2025 to 15 licenses in early August 2026. Tattoo and body piercing licenses were also cut nearly in half, dropping from 75 licenses last year to 38 this year.

Temporary vendor licenses, which make up the largest overall share of rally merchants, fell from 206 in 2025 down to 156 in 2026. Transient licenses decreased from 16 to 11, while sexually oriented performer licenses fell from 128 to 117.

Automated teller machine permits were the only recorded metric to remain completely unchanged, holding steady at one license for both 2025 and 2026.