With 0.3 jobs for every working resident, most of Central High works elsewhere
123 jobs are based in Central High, against 415 working residents. For jobs and income Central High is better than 35% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 15% of U.S. towns (D). Only 1% work in Central High itself; outside it, Duncan draws the most (31%, 12 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Central High in brief
Central High and Duncan trade workers both ways
Duncan is the top workplace for Central High residents (31%) and also where the most people who work in Central High come from (24% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Central High is a place people come home to
There are 123 jobs based in Central High, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. Day and night ↓
A big share show a job far from home
31% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 415 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Central High
Household income holds Central High’s grade up ($75,435, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 19% of U.S. towns).
Unemployment (2.4%) is left out: Central High’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Central High could be anywhere from C− to B.
The places Central High commutes to
Where Central High clocks in
31% of workers
12% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
The workday shuffle in and out of Central High
On a workday 409 residents head out to work, 6 work right here, and 117 people come in from elsewhere.
About 940 people are in Central High on a workday afternoon, 24% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Short hops and long hauls from Central High
About 31% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Goods jobs make up 33% of work in Central High
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Central High, 2013 → 2023: 162 → 123. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Central High’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 27 minutes each way, longer than most of Oklahoma
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Central High workers work from home, vs 9% across Oklahoma. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 602 commuters (the 4% who work from home are left out). Across Oklahoma: 85% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Central High is a driving town
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 628 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 3.3% of Central High households have no vehicle (Oklahoma 5.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Central High’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Central High ranks: 2,441st of 4,866 U.S. towns of 900 to 1,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 67 | Forest Park OK | 1,035 | $104K | 0.4% | 1.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 643 | Justice OK | 1,530 | $98K | 7.5% | 2.7% | 1% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,136 | Oologah OK | 1,358 | $80K | 9.4% | 7.6% | 5% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 2,439 | Solomon KS | 1,007 | $51K | 5.9% | 2.6% | 11% | C+ |
| 2,440 | Highlands NC | 1,127 | $72K | 7.9% | 4.3% | 31% | C+ |
| 2,441 | Central High OK | 1,229 | $75K | 9.9% | 2.4% | 1% | C+ |
| 2,442 | Sunderland VT | 1,058 | $89K | 11.2% | 4.9% | 6% | C+ |
| 2,443 | Warren IN | 1,209 | $68K | 12.4% | 5.6% | 7% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,866 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Central High, the top three, the last and three more from Oklahoma.
Central High and its neighbors
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Central High workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central High | – | C+ | D | 27 min | $75,435 |
| Empire City | under 1% | — | — | 31 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Empire City: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Central High’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Central High: questions
What is the median household income in Central High?
$75,435 (±$8,580) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $65,039 across Oklahoma and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Central High?
9.9%, against 15.3% across Oklahoma and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Central High?
27 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Oklahoma and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Central High work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Duncan (31%, 12 mi), Marlow (14%, 8 mi), Oklahoma City (12%, 67 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Central High walkable?
Central High is more walkable than 15% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.1 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Central High without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Central High, from the people who make the trip.
More of Central High
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.