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Big city living isn't for everyone--but at the same time, urban areas certainly have their perks.
There's the culture, the food, the arts, the food, the energy, and you know, the food. But there are drawbacks. There's traffic, expensive parking, expensive housing--pretty much, expensive everything, depending on which big city you're looking at.
But that's where the suburbs come in--they have all of the benefits of being near big cities, without actually having to be big cities.
Of course, not all suburbs of Oklahoma City are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. So without further ado...
What's the best suburb of Oklahoma City? Nichols Hills ranks as the best suburb of Oklahoma City for 2022 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Nichols Hills, you're probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We'll tell you what makes each of these 10 Oklahoma City 'burbs better than the rest--but first, a bit about our methodology.
Note: This result may differ from our state wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a larger selection of suburbs.
Feel free to check out some more reading about Oklahoma:
The 10 Best Oklahoma City Suburbs To Live For 2022
Nichols Hills is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Oklahoma City area. We'll tell you the good about "Awesome Nichols Hills."
Everyone here is rich; families average $171,705 a year, which is the highest in the Oklahoma City region. And only 1.34% are out of work. Homes average more than $717,800 each.
/10
Population: 3,910
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $171,705
Unemployment Rate: 1.3%
Poverty Rate: 4.0%
More on Nichols Hills: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Newcastle is the second best 'burb we looked at near Oklahoma City for 2022.
It ranks 3rd for incomes in the area and only 5.95% of residents lack insurance, good for 4th best.
/10
Population: 10,425
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 6)
Median Income: $86,065
Unemployment Rate: 2.5%
Poverty Rate: 3.6%
More on Newcastle: Real Estate | Data
Here in Edmond, it's really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you'll see in the Oklahoma City metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Edmond.
/10
Population: 93,101
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 1)
Median Income: $84,223
Unemployment Rate: 3.6%
Poverty Rate: 10.6%
More on Edmond: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Choctaw ranks as the 4th best suburb of Oklahoma City for 2022.
You won't find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Choctaw and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 12,467
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 3)
Median Income: $77,219
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 4.9%
More on Choctaw: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Coming in as the fifth best is Tuttle.
Tuttle gets kudos for having the 6th most expensive homes in the Oklahoma City area, where houses sell for an average of $194,700. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 7,348
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Median Income: $89,375
Unemployment Rate: 3.4%
Poverty Rate: 4.2%
More on Tuttle: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Mustang is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here's why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 4.1% which is 14th best in the area.
According to online reports, Mustang is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Oklahoma City area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 22,228
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 1)
Median Income: $74,980
Unemployment Rate: 4.1%
Poverty Rate: 4.5%
More on Mustang: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Goldsby.
Goldsby schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it's only 24.6 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 2,360
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 2)
Median Income: $74,142
Unemployment Rate: 1.5%
Poverty Rate: 11.1%
More on Goldsby: Real Estate | Data
Blanchard is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 8.59% of people lack insurance, good for 9th in the area.
/10
Population: 8,362
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 2)
Median Income: $78,500
Unemployment Rate: 4.1%
Poverty Rate: 6.3%
More on Blanchard: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Is 'Everything Better In Piedmont?'
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it's really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
/10
Population: 8,155
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 7)
Median Income: $85,237
Unemployment Rate: 1.4%
Poverty Rate: 1.2%
More on Piedmont: Real Estate | Data
And rounding out the top ten for 2022 is Noble.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It's far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
/10
Population: 6,956
Rank Last Year: 18 (Up 8)
Median Income: $82,843
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 6.3%
More on Noble: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Oklahoma City for 2022
Figuring out the best suburbs around Oklahoma City was pretty simple; we just needed to list several things that people like, and then find out which cities have the most of those things.
We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:
- Low unemployment rate
- High Median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
Then we used the newest American Community Survey data for 2016-2020 to research each suburb.
FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Oklahoma City.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 25 suburbs to evaluate around Oklahoma City.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 25 in each category, where 1 was the "best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.
And finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index the "Best Suburb near Oklahoma City." We're lookin' at you, Nichols Hills. You can download the data here.
Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the best of the best. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Oklahoma City 'Burbs of 2022
We said it once and we'll say it again--life in the big city isn't for everyone. At least not all the time.
So if you're hankering for some of the amenities of a larger city like Oklahoma City, but don't want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might just be for you.
For more Oklahoma reading, check out:
Detailed List Of The Best Oklahoma City Suburbs
Rank | City | Population |
---|---|---|
1 | Nichols Hills, OK | 3,910 |
2 | Newcastle, OK | 10,425 |
3 | Edmond, OK | 93,101 |
4 | Choctaw, OK | 12,467 |
5 | Tuttle, OK | 7,348 |
6 | Mustang, OK | 22,228 |
7 | Goldsby, OK | 2,360 |
8 | Blanchard, OK | 8,362 |
9 | Piedmont, OK | 8,155 |
10 | Noble, OK | 6,956 |
11 | Yukon, OK | 27,557 |
12 | Moore, OK | 61,683 |
13 | Norman, OK | 124,086 |
14 | Slaughterville, OK | 4,291 |
15 | Bethel Acres, OK | 3,187 |
16 | Harrah, OK | 6,480 |
17 | Bethany, OK | 19,292 |
18 | Warr Acres, OK | 10,169 |
19 | Nicoma Park, OK | 2,550 |
20 | Guthrie, OK | 11,296 |
21 | Mcloud, OK | 3,988 |
22 | Jones, OK | 3,129 |
23 | Spencer, OK | 3,985 |
24 | Del City, OK | 21,762 |
25 | El Reno, OK | 19,539 |