Unemployment in Spencer (8.7%) is higher than in 91% of U.S. towns
Hardly any work in Spencer itself; outside it, Oklahoma City draws the most (62%, 8 miles). For jobs and income Spencer is better than 30% of U.S. towns (C); for walkability it is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (B). Household incomes here are lower than in 74% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Spencer: the gist
Much of Spencer works one town over
68% of working residents work in a town that borders Spencer: Oklahoma City (62%) and Midwest City (6%). Next door ↓
Spencer is a place people come home to
There are 372 jobs based in Spencer, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Spencer has about 2,800 people in it, 29% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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.
Why Spencer gets the Jobs & income grade it does
Job access by car holds Spencer’s grade up (ahead of 82% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Spencer could be anywhere from C− to A−.
A workday in Spencer: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 1,467 residents head out to work, 12 work right here, and 360 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,800 people are in Spencer on a workday afternoon, 29% fewer than live here.
0.25 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.
Out of Spencer to work: where people go
Where Spencer clocks in
62% 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.
What Spencer’s employers do
372 jobs are based in Spencer.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Spencer, 2013 → 2023: 234 → 372. 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 Spencer’s own residents hold wherever they work.
From Spencer, about 26 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Spencer workers work from home, vs 9% across Oklahoma. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,403 commuters (the 16% 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.
How far it is to work from Spencer
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.
Most of Spencer commutes by car
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.5% across Oklahoma.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,672 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 39% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 38% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 58% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 14.1% of Spencer households have no vehicle (Oklahoma 5.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Spencer’s commuters take a bus or train.
Spencer places 3,077th of 4,264 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 2,700 to 5,200
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Nichols Hills OK | 3,864 | $208K | 2.8% | 0.3% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 990 | Goldsby OK | 3,591 | $103K | 11.2% | 2.4% | 9% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,696 | Jones OK | 3,222 | $77K | 15.2% | 2.5% | 6% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 3,075 | Coloma Township MI | 4,968 | $60K | 13.0% | 5.3% | 4% | C |
| 3,076 | O'Neill NE | 3,567 | $57K | 18.5% | 0.5% | 10% | C |
| 3,077 | Spencer OK | 3,857 | $60K | 15.1% | 8.7% | 1% | C |
| 3,078 | Newbern TN | 3,222 | $58K | 18.0% | 3.0% | 11% | C |
| 3,079 | Rush Township PA | 3,516 | $76K | 12.0% | 11.2% | 7% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 4,264 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Spencer, the top three, the last and three more from Oklahoma.
68% of Spencer works in a town next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Spencer workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spencer | – | C | B | 26 min | $59,861 |
| Midwest City | 6% | C | B+ | 23 min | $57,520 |
| Oklahoma City | 62% | B− | B+ | 22 min | $68,656 |
| Nicoma Park | under 1% | B− | C− | 26 min | $62,447 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Oklahoma City. Darker towns draw more of Spencer’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 Spencer: questions
What is the median household income in Spencer?
$59,861 (±$13,913) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $65,039 across Oklahoma and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Spencer?
15.1%, against 15.3% across Oklahoma and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Spencer?
26 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Oklahoma and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Spencer work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Oklahoma City (62%, 8 mi), Midwest City (6%, 4 mi), Edmond (4%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Spencer walkable?
Spencer is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 8.3 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Spencer without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 14% of households have no car. 38% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Spencer, from the people who make the trip.
More of Spencer
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.