Jobs and the daily commute in Kiowa
Working residents average 20 minutes each way, next to 22 for Oklahoma and 26 for the U.S. Only 8% stay in Kiowa for work; outside it, McAlester is the main destination (23%, 16 miles). Employers in Kiowa report 121 jobs, against 173 working residents.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The workday shuffle in and out of Kiowa
On a workday 160 residents head out to work, 13 work right here, and 108 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
0.70 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
The towns that employ Kiowa’s residents
Where Kiowa clocks in
23% of workers
6% of workers
4% 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.
A place that makes things: 40% of Kiowa’s jobs are in goods
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Kiowa, 2013 → 2023: 172 → 121. 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 Kiowa’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Kiowa spends getting to work: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Kiowa workers work from home, vs 9% across Oklahoma. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 229 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.
Half of Kiowa commutes less than 37 miles
About 43% 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.
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 Kiowa: questions
What is the median household income in Kiowa?
$46,250 (±$9,050) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $65,039 across Oklahoma and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Kiowa?
24.8%, against 15.3% across Oklahoma and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Kiowa?
20 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Oklahoma and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Kiowa work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are McAlester (23%, 16 mi), Oklahoma City (6%, 105 mi), Tulsa (4%, 97 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Kiowa without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Kiowa, from the people who make the trip.
More of Kiowa
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.