Photo: Nils Huenerfuerst · CC BY-SA 4.0Tulsa has higher unemployment (6.1%) than 75% of U.S. towns
More than half work in Tulsa; the top destination outside it is Broken Arrow (6%, 9 miles). Jobs and income earn Tulsa C; getting around on foot earns it A−. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 4.4 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 0.5 in Broken Arrow.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Tulsa, in a few figures
Income, poverty and work: Tulsa’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Tulsa is better than 34% of U.S. towns, #45 of 131 in Oklahoma. Job access by car holds Tulsa’s grade up (ahead of 86% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (18.7%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Tulsa could be anywhere from C to C+.
Tulsa on a workday afternoon
On a workday 62,523 residents head out to work, 99,684 work right here, and 151,807 people come in from elsewhere.
About 505,000 people are in Tulsa on a workday afternoon, 21% more than live here.
1.6 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
Commuting in to Tulsa: where workers come from
Where Tulsa clocks in
6% of workers
6% 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 the 251,491 jobs in Tulsa are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Tulsa, 2013 → 2023: 249,414 → 251,491. 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 Tulsa’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Tulsa’s commute takes about 19 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Tulsa workers work from home, vs 9% across Oklahoma. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 170,854 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.
Where in the region Tulsa works
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.
In Tulsa, walking beats the bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Tulsa is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns, #10 of 131 in Oklahoma. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, above 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 193,054 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 80% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 14% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 82% 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). 8.3% of Tulsa households have no vehicle (Oklahoma 5.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Tulsa’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
For jobs and income, Tulsa is 40th of 46 U.S. towns of 291,000 to 562,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oyster Bay NY | 301,115 | $160K | 3.9% | 4.6% | 19% | A |
| 2 | Plano TX | 293,028 | $112K | 6.8% | 4.0% | 23% | A |
| 3 | Islip NY | 340,867 | $130K | 6.4% | 4.5% | 28% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 38 | Stockton CA | 324,597 | $80K | 15.5% | 8.6% | 33% | C+ |
| 39 | Pittsburgh PA | 307,632 | $66K | 20.1% | 6.1% | 55% | C+ |
| 40 | Tulsa OK | 416,209 | $60K | 18.7% | 6.1% | 61% | C |
| 41 | Fresno CA | 555,549 | $71K | 20.1% | 8.9% | 56% | C |
| 42 | Tucson AZ | 548,371 | $57K | 18.9% | 6.2% | 57% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 46 | Cleveland OH | 363,608 | $41K | 30.6% | 10.8% | 42% | C− |
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 Tulsa, the top three, the last and three more from Oklahoma.
The towns next door employ 14% of Tulsa
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Tulsa workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tulsa | – | C | A− | 19 min | $59,838 |
| Fair Oaks | under 1% | — | — | 22 min | — |
| Turley | under 1% | C− | C+ | 25 min | $42,298 |
| Broken Arrow | 6% | B+ | B− | 22 min | $86,765 |
| Jenks | 2% | A | C+ | 21 min | $111,004 |
| Oakhurst | under 1% | C | C | 21 min | $57,222 |
| Sapulpa | 1% | B− | C | 22 min | $63,817 |
| Sand Springs | 1% | B− | B− | 21 min | $75,645 |
| Bixby | 2% | A− | B− | 24 min | $104,404 |
| Catoosa | 2% | B− | C+ | 20 min | $72,467 |
| Sperry | under 1% | C | C+ | 25 min | $49,583 |
Same-state neighbors only. Fair Oaks: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Broken Arrow. Darker towns draw more of Tulsa’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 Tulsa: questions
What is the median household income in Tulsa?
$59,838 (±$961) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $65,039 across Oklahoma and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Tulsa?
18.7%, against 15.3% across Oklahoma and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Tulsa?
19 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Oklahoma and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Tulsa work?
61% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Broken Arrow (6%, 9 mi), Oklahoma City (6%, 101 mi), Bixby (2%, 13 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Tulsa walkable?
Tulsa is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 12.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Tulsa without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. 14% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Tulsa, from the people who make the trip.
More of Tulsa
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.