The 10 Poorest Cities In Oklahoma For 2024


The poorest places in Oklahoma are Hugo and Seminole for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Like all states, Oklahoma has certain places that are going on hard times. These Oklahoma places have an above-average percentage of people living in poverty, out of work, or not making as much as they should be.

Even as the economy continues to improve, it’s worthwhile to look at the places in each state struggling to make ends meet. So we set our sites on locating the poorest places in Oklahoma.

To do so, we used Saturday Night Science to analyze the newest Census data from the American Community Survey for the 76 cities in Oklahoma with more than 5,000 people.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Poorest Places In Oklahoma For 2024:

  1. Hugo
  2. Seminole
  3. Idabel
  4. Stillwater
  5. Sallisaw
  6. Vinita
  7. Henryetta
  8. Okmulgee
  9. Holdenville
  10. Sayre

Poorest Places In Oklahoma Map

What’s the poorest city in Oklahoma? According to the facts, Hugo is the poorest place in Oklahoma for 2024.

This isn’t a commentary on the people that live there or the vibrant culture and traditions of these places. Instead, it’s just a look at the facts.

For more Oklahoma reading, check out:

The 10 Poorest Cities In Oklahoma For 2024

1. Hugo

Hugo, OK

Source: Wikipedia User Michael Barera | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 5,178
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $30,089 (lowest)
Poverty Rate: 34.4% (2nd highest)
People In Poverty: 1,780
More on Hugo: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Hugo, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in Oklahoma thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.

The city of 5,178 people averages the lowest median household income in Oklahoma and the 2nd highest poverty rate. At the very least, the cost of living ranks in the bottom 15% of place in the state, so things like housing are relatively affordable.

2. Seminole

Seminole, OK

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 7,144
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 2)
Median Income: $34,599 (2nd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 30.8% (4th highest)
People In Poverty: 2,201
More on Seminole: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

The second poorest city in Oklahoma is Seminole.

The city ranks as having the 4th highest incidence of poverty and 2nd lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate ‘only’ ranks as the 14th highest in the Sooner State.

3. Idabel

Idabel, OK

Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

1
/10

Population: 6,994
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 1)
Median Income: $34,683 (3rd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 29.5% (5th highest)
People In Poverty: 2,061
More on Idabel: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Placing as the third poorest city, Idabel’s median income ranks as the 3rd lowest.

And that’s a sign that there’s a relatively substantial jump in the quality of the economy from second to third place on our list. The poverty rate is 29.47% and ranks near the bottom of places in the state.

But what makes up for the relatively low incomes of the city is its low cost of living. The income you do make here goes further than in most parts of the Sooner State.

4. Stillwater

Stillwater, OK

Source: Wikipedia User Fletcherspears | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 48,644
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 1)
Median Income: $39,998 (7th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 31.5% (3rd highest)
People In Poverty: 15,337
More on Stillwater: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Stillwater ranks as the fourth poorest place in Oklahoma.

The town ranks as having the 7th lowest median household income and the 3rd highest incidence of poverty in the state.

That being said, there’s still a ton of cultural diversity in the city as it hosts many events throughout the year.

5. Sallisaw

Sallisaw, OK

Source: Wikipedia User John Phelan | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 8,524
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 1)
Median Income: $44,310 (11th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 35.2% (highest)
People In Poverty: 3,003
More on Sallisaw: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

The fifth poorest city in Oklahoma is Sallisaw.

The city ranks as having the 11th lowest median income in the state. However, an extremely low cost of living prevents a good number of folks from living in poverty as the poverty rate only ranks as the highest in Oklahoma.

Still not the best news for Sallisaw.

6. Vinita

Vinita, OK

Source: Wikipedia User TheWhitePelican | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 5,207
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 1)
Median Income: $38,621 (6th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 25.4% (10th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,322
More on Vinita: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Vinita ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Sooner State.

It ranks as having the 10th highest incidence of poverty and the 17th highest unemployment rate.

7. Henryetta

Henryetta, OK

Source: Flickr User FreeWine | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 5,639
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 5)
Median Income: $42,513 (9th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 26.5% (7th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,492
More on Henryetta: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Henryetta places as the seventh poorest city in Oklahoma.

The city of over 5,639 ranks as having the 7th highest incidence of poverty in the state. However, it has a very low cost of living which helps to pay the bills each month.

8. Okmulgee

Okmulgee, OK

Source: Wikipedia User Caleb Long | CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0
Overall SnackAbility

1
/10

Population: 11,366
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 1)
Median Income: $38,311 (5th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 23.3% (13th highest)
People In Poverty: 2,644
More on Okmulgee: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Okmulgee ranks as the eighth poorest city in Oklahoma.

The big issue for the town is the unemployment rate which ranks as one of the highest in the state.

9. Holdenville

Holdenville, OK

Source: Flickr User peggydavis66 | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 5,900
Rank Last Year: 16 (Up 7)
Median Income: $38,232 (4th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 22.6% (16th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,334
More on Holdenville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Holdenville couldn’t stay out of the top ten poorest places in Oklahoma; it ranks number 9.

While the median income is the 4th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Holdenville ranks as having the 16th most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in Oklahoma.

10. Sayre

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 5,459
Rank Last Year:
Median Income: $45,859 (14th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 29.3% (6th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,601
More on Sayre: Data | Crime

And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in Oklahoma is Sayre.

The city of 5,459 people ranks in the bottom 20% for both median income and poverty rate in the Sooner State.

Methodology: How We Determined The Poorest Places In Oklahoma for 2024

The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the poorest places is to simply the poverty rate. That is, the number of people living below a federally established level of income for a household of a certain size.

However, we don’t think that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “poorest places”. So we used Saturday Night Science to look at this set of criteria from the newly released 2018-2022 American Community Survey:

  • Poverty Level
  • Median Household Income

After we collected the data for all 76 places with more than 5,000 people in Oklahoma, we ranked each place from 1 to 76 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the poorest.

We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Poor Score” with the place having the lowest overall Poor Score, Hugo, crowned the “Poorest Place In Oklahoma For 2024”.

This report has been updated for 2024, which is our tenth time ranking the poorest places in Oklahoma.

Summary: The Poorest Cities In Oklahoma For 2024

Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the poorest places in Oklahoma, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Oklahoma.

When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very bottom of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.

If you’re curious enough, here are the richest cities in Oklahoma, according to data:

    Richest: Tuttle
    2nd Richest: Newcastle
    3rd Richest: Piedmont

For more Oklahoma reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Poorest Places To Live In Oklahoma

Rank City Population Poverty Rate Median Income People In Poverty
1 Hugo 5,178 34.4% $30,089 1,780
2 Seminole 7,144 30.8% $34,599 2,201
3 Idabel 6,994 29.5% $34,683 2,061
4 Stillwater 48,644 31.5% $39,998 15,337
5 Sallisaw 8,524 35.2% $44,310 3,003
6 Vinita 5,207 25.4% $38,621 1,322
7 Henryetta 5,639 26.5% $42,513 1,492
8 Okmulgee 11,366 23.3% $38,311 2,644
9 Holdenville 5,900 22.6% $38,232 1,334
10 Sayre 5,459 29.3% $45,859 1,601
11 Miami 12,995 22.8% $44,010 2,964
12 Alva 5,020 21.9% $41,809 1,099
13 McAlester 18,110 24.1% $46,875 4,360
14 Elk City 11,494 25.9% $47,903 2,981
15 Muskogee 36,933 22.5% $46,825 8,317
16 Weatherford 11,999 24.0% $47,851 2,879
17 Anadarko 5,723 25.7% $49,770 1,473
18 Pryor Creek 9,480 20.6% $46,635 1,950
19 Durant 18,759 19.4% $44,593 3,646
20 Pauls Valley 6,031 20.1% $45,400 1,211
21 Poteau 8,852 20.7% $47,782 1,831
22 Tahlequah 16,389 20.7% $49,444 3,399
23 Del City 21,682 20.6% $48,200 4,470
24 Cushing 8,336 18.4% $46,602 1,532
25 Ada 16,537 18.4% $47,264 3,046
26 Guymon 12,743 23.1% $55,526 2,941
27 Shawnee 31,391 20.2% $50,695 6,353
28 Blackwell 6,132 18.3% $47,333 1,123
29 Tecumseh 6,326 20.3% $53,729 1,282
30 El Reno 17,474 19.4% $49,988 3,382
31 Sulphur 5,025 21.0% $55,951 1,056
32 Lawton 91,023 19.4% $51,561 17,658
33 Guthrie 10,872 20.4% $55,405 2,213
34 Warr Acres 10,424 18.4% $54,221 1,923
35 Ardmore 24,784 17.7% $49,408 4,386
36 Duncan 22,759 19.2% $55,162 4,367
37 Ponca City 24,441 17.7% $51,367 4,328
38 Woodward 12,067 17.6% $54,864 2,127
39 Bethany 20,620 16.5% $54,606 3,398
40 Chickasha 16,231 17.5% $55,136 2,843
41 Grove 7,012 18.4% $56,469 1,288
42 Tulsa 411,938 18.2% $56,648 74,849
43 Wagoner 7,813 14.2% $55,169 1,105
44 Altus 18,711 15.6% $56,620 2,920
45 Norman 127,701 17.7% $62,849 22,628
46 Enid 50,961 15.7% $60,790 7,990
47 Midwest City 58,124 15.2% $56,811 8,840
48 Claremore 19,724 12.7% $56,257 2,499
49 Bartlesville 37,314 14.3% $58,230 5,354
50 Catoosa 7,680 15.4% $67,143 1,182
51 Oklahoma City 681,088 15.0% $64,251 102,231
52 Lone Grove 5,026 15.4% $68,433 773
53 Coweta 9,903 11.5% $57,166 1,141
54 Sapulpa 22,030 12.2% $62,168 2,698
55 The Village 9,479 12.7% $67,524 1,206
56 Harrah 6,259 13.6% $68,661 853
57 Clinton 8,499 9.5% $62,368 805
58 Sand Springs 19,925 10.8% $70,431 2,155
59 Purcell 6,632 9.9% $68,295 656
60 Collinsville 8,073 12.1% $76,866 973
61 Moore 62,685 10.5% $73,285 6,556
62 Glenpool 13,683 9.2% $75,876 1,260
63 Noble 7,168 10.7% $84,029 767
64 Yukon 24,198 8.3% $75,865 2,018
65 Broken Arrow 114,237 8.5% $82,547 9,710
66 Owasso 38,134 7.1% $79,183 2,692
67 Mustang 20,518 8.0% $84,162 1,633
68 Edmond 94,503 9.5% $96,389 8,939
69 Verdigris 5,308 6.1% $83,281 321
70 Choctaw 12,154 6.5% $90,241 791
71 Blanchard 8,708 5.4% $86,964 470
72 Bixby 28,731 6.1% $93,765 1,758
73 Jenks 25,872 7.7% $101,767 1,999
74 Piedmont 7,629 1.1% $86,453 86
75 Newcastle 11,508 3.6% $90,469 415
76 Tuttle 7,533 4.4% $98,393 330
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.

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