Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Ardmore earns a D, 105th of 131 graded towns in Oklahoma, mostly because of safety and health. Its crime rate is higher than 97% of U.S. towns, with 264 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 86% of the country. One bright spot: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 76% of U.S. towns. 54% of working residents work locally in Ardmore, above both the Oklahoma town median (22%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). Ardmore has 17 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Ardmore Historic Commercial District (Additional Documentation) and Black Theater of Ardmore. No town among the 124 in Oklahoma we compare has a higher rate of reported violence than Ardmore.
Where Ardmore beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Sayre-Mann House
Census counts: 5,681 in 1900, 24,725 in 2020. The archive holds 11 old photos and papers going back to 1891 and 5 maps from 1901 on.
17 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Oklahoma), ordered by how far Ardmore is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Ardmore, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Ardmore.
Ardmore draws workers from Lone Grove and beyond and has hotter summers than nearly all U.S. towns, but it reports violent crime at about twice the Oklahoma rate.
Violent crime runs at 10.5 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Oklahoma rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on that grade. Reported crimes fell from 1,156 to 877 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
For Ardmore, the rate of thefts and burglaries is 24.4 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Below: Three of its 13 schools, each with why it was picked. The Ardmore school district runs its public schools. Public school enrollment locally: 1,900 students across 5 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln EsLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–4 | Grades 3–4 | 409 | C |
| Ardmore HSLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 707 | C− |
| Plainview Intermediate EsTop results in townGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 363 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OK on state tests and graduation
18,668 jobs are based in Ardmore, 1.8 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
Between 2013 and 2023, jobs in Ardmore rose by 1,739, to 18,668. In Ardmore, the mean commuting time is 17 minutes. The top destinations are Oklahoma City (5%), Ada (3%) and Norman (2%). For workers here, the share who work from home is 4.2%.
| Ardmore | Oklahoma towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 4.2% | 6.6% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 17% | 18% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $54,000 | $55,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Within Oklahoma it is less healthy than 58% of the 131 graded towns: much of Oklahoma scores lower on these measures.
16% of Ardmore adults report frequent physical distress. In Ardmore, 12% of adults binge drink, and 43% have high blood pressure.
| Ardmore | Oklahoma towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 34% | 25% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 40% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 12% |
| What stands out | Ardmore | OK |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4.6% | 3.7% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.7% | 8% |
| More adults with diabetes | 15.1% | 12.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The biggest park or preserve is Whittington Park, at 52 acres. Walkers can cover 13 miles of trail in 11 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Ardmore: 11, covering 146 acres.
| Ardmore | Oklahoma towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 6.9% | 7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Broadlawn Park | 0.9 mi | 23 |
| 2. Whittington Park | 0.5 mi | 52 |
| 3. Southwest Park | 0.4 mi | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
On the market in Ardmore: a median 82 days to sell. The share of households in Ardmore who live in a home they own: 55%. Homes in Ardmore sold for 94% of their list price on average.
| Ardmore | Oklahoma towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 62% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,006 a month | $870 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
July afternoons average 94.3°, hotter than in 95% of U.S. towns; January nights average 30.8°.
Ardmore’s July high comes in at 94°F. Among 131 Oklahoma towns, just 6 have a higher January low than Ardmore. About 3 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Ardmore | Oklahoma towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 94°F | 93°F | 85°F |
| January low | 31°F | 28°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
On expected storm and flood damage, Ardmore sits above 60% of U.S. communities. 22 flood insurance claims have been paid locally since 1985. Expected losses in Ardmore break down as 33% from tornadoes and 30% from inland flooding. Households here have drawn federal disaster aid in 11 declared disasters, most recently in 2024.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Every broad age group is within 4 points of the Oklahoma average. Four-year graduates: just over a fifth of adults 25 and older here, 28% across Oklahoma. For Ardmore, the median age is 36.3 years.
| Ardmore | Oklahoma towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 36.3 years | 36.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 25% | 25% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 21% | 20% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 16% | 18% |
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1 point). Across Oklahoma, 50.2% of residents are women. Median age: women 38.4, men 34.3.
| Ardmore | OK | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.7% | 12.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.2% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.1% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.1% | 13.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.3% | 13.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.9% | 11.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.3% | 11.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.7% | 9.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.7% | 6.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 13.6% | 10.6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 35.4% | 30.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.9% | 22.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.8% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 13.9% | 18.5% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.4% | 9.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
None within 15 miles of Ardmore; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Ardmore residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Oklahoma.
Where Ardmore’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
17 places in Ardmore on the National Register of Historic Places.
33 notable people were born in Ardmore.
City in Oklahoma, US
Ardmore is a city in and the county seat of Carter County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 24,725 at the time of the 2020 census, a 1.8% increase over the 2010 census figure of 24,283. The Ardmore micropolitan area had an estimated population of 48,491 in 2013. Ardmore is 90 miles (140 km) from both Oklahoma City and Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, at the junction of Interstate 35 and U.S. Highway 70, and is generally considered the hub of the 13-county region of South Central Oklahoma, also known by state tourism pamphlets as "Chickasaw Country" and previously "Lake and Trail Country". It is also a part of the Texoma region. Ardmore is situated about 9 miles (14 km) south of the Arbu…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Ardmore.
| Town | OK rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ardmore | #105 | D | B− | D− | B | D |
| Gene Autry | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dickson | — | — | B | C+ | B | C− |
| Springer | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Dickson has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Gene Autry and Springer aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Ardmore with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Ardmore grades D overall, better than 11% of U.S. towns and #105 of 131 in Oklahoma. It grades D for health, D− for safety and B for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 2.6 years of the area's median household income ($60,723 across the Ardmore, OK area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
33 notable people were born here, including Rex Ryan and Joel Hefley.
