Photo: Clancyp0563 · CC BY-SA 3.0How Oologah works: jobs, income and commuting
Oologah grades B for jobs and income and C+ for walkability. Only 5% work in Oologah; the top destination outside it is Tulsa (33%, 24 miles). The average commute takes 27 minutes each way; Oklahoma averages 22, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Oologah, in a few figures
One in three of Oologah works in Tulsa
189 working residents, 33%, have their main job in Tulsa, 24 miles away. That’s 7 times as many as work in Oologah itself. The commute map ↓
Oologah workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 27 minutes each way, against 22 across Oklahoma. Over a year that’s about 207 hours of commuting, 38 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 572 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Jobs & income in Oologah: the grade in detail
On income, poverty and job access, Oologah is better than 62% of U.S. towns. All three inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Oologah’s grade. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
Unemployment (7.6%) is left out: Oologah’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Oologah could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
Out of Oologah to work: where people go
Where Oologah clocks in
33% of workers
5% 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.
Time on the road from Oologah: about 27 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Oologah workers work from home, vs 9% across Oklahoma. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 715 commuters (the 11% 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.
A workday in Oologah: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 541 residents head out to work, 31 work right here, and 651 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.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.19 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Oologah
682 jobs are based in Oologah.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Oologah, 2014 → 2024: 757 → 682. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Oologah’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Oologah’s workers travel
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Most trips from Oologah start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Oologah is more walkable than 37% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Oologah near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 803 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). 2.1% of Oologah households have no vehicle (Oklahoma 5.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Oologah’s commuters take a bus or train.
Oologah places 1,286th of 5,400 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 1,000 to 1,800
| # | 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% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 74 | Forest Park OK | 1,035 | $104K | 0.4% | 1.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 734 | Justice OK | 1,530 | $98K | 7.5% | 2.7% | 1% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,284 | Gilman WI | 1,056 | $108K | 6.6% | 4.3% | 2% | B |
| 1,285 | Nicollet MN | 1,127 | $85K | 6.6% | 2.0% | 2% | B |
| 1,286 | Oologah OK | 1,358 | $80K | 9.4% | 7.6% | 5% | B |
| 1,287 | Whiting WI | 1,649 | $73K | 6.5% | 2.6% | 2% | B |
| 1,288 | Fall Creek WI | 1,390 | $87K | 7.3% | 3.5% | 6% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,699 | Okarche OK | 1,196 | $94K | 11.8% | 0.8% | 8% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,400 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 1% | 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 Oologah, the top three, the last and three more from Oklahoma.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2024, 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 Oologah: questions
What is the median household income in Oologah?
$79,886 (±$16,187) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $65,039 across Oklahoma and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Oologah?
9.4%, against 15.3% across Oklahoma and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Oologah?
27 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Oklahoma and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Oologah work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Tulsa (33%, 24 mi), Owasso (9%, 13 mi), Claremore (5%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Oologah walkable?
Oologah is more walkable than 37% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 6.7 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Oologah without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Oologah, from the people who make the trip.
More of Oologah
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.