The median worker in the Tulsa, OK metro area earned $45,460 a year in 2024, about $21.86 an hour. That ranks #239 of the 391 metro areas published here, 8.2% below the national median.
Tulsa pays 3.4% more than Oklahoma as a whole. Metros usually run ahead of their states because they concentrate higher-paying industries, and the gap is a rough measure of how much of a state's economy sits in its cities.
Housing here moved +1.8% over the year to 2026 Q2 and +37.3% over five years. Pay and house prices rarely move together, and where they diverge for long the
affordability of an area changes even when nothing about the jobs does.
House prices in Tulsa.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 state estimates. Wage and salary workers only, excluding the self-employed.
The median across all occupations is $45,460, or $21.86 an hour, covering 453,400 wage and salary workers. The mean is $57,250, higher because a small number of very large salaries pull an average upward.
Does Tulsa pay more than the rest of Oklahoma?
Yes. The metro median of $45,460 is 3.4% above the Oklahoma median of $43,950. Metropolitan areas usually pay more than their states because they concentrate higher-paying industries, and usually cost more to live in for the same reason.
Which jobs pay best in Tulsa?
Database Architects ($167,760), Dentists, General ($161,880), Architectural and Engineering Managers ($156,980). Medical specialities top nearly every metro list, which reflects how the occupations are classified more than local conditions.
What is Tulsa unusually full of?
Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers, at 5.62× the national concentration. Location quotient is a better description of a local economy than its biggest employers, which are retail and food service almost everywhere.