City · McClain County, Oklahoma

Purcell, Oklahoma

Purcell is a city in McClain County, Oklahoma, part of the Oklahoma City, OK metro area. It has 6,803 residents. Purcell, Oklahoma has a quality-of-life score of 24 out of 100 (low), ranking #11,908 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Oklahoma it ranks #65 of 237 cities and towns. It ranks best on time spent in the emergency room (low), primary care shortage (low) and average commute time (low). It ranks worst on grocery stores (low), drought exposure (high) and public EV charging ports (low).

24Low

Quality-of-life score: #11,908 of 15,651 cities and towns
Oklahoma: #65 of 237 in OK
Population: 6,803 (2020-2024)
Land area: 15 mi²
Density: 447.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 4061150

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety43#8,880/15,637
Economy37#9,788/15,631
Housing76#3,654/14,977
Health28#11,306/15,609
Healthcare32#10,611/15,650
Environment15#13,133/15,453
Education20#12,596/15,649
Infrastructure51#7,735/15,650
Community35#10,244/15,651
Leisure & amenities5#14,809/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Purcell, Oklahoma ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “McClain County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Time spent in the emergency room · low74 min
100/100Oklahoma 122 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMcClain County value
Primary care shortage · low0.0
90/100Oklahoma 11.0United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationMcClain County value
Average commute time · low19.2 min
89/100Oklahoma 22.4 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Job growth · high1.8%
87/100Oklahoma 0.0%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataMcClain County value
Violent crime rate · low98 /100k
86/100Oklahoma 408 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationMcClain County value
Dental care shortage · low0.0
84/100Oklahoma 7.8United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationMcClain County value

Weaknesses

Grocery stores · low0.6 /10k
3/100Oklahoma 1.2 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMcClain County value
Drought exposure · high88%
7/100Oklahoma 67%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAMcClain County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.4 /10k
8/100Oklahoma 3.8 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyMcClain County value
Homicide rate · high9.0 /100k
10/100Oklahoma 6.4 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataMcClain County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · high17.1%
11/100Oklahoma 14.4%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Traffic deaths · high25.2 /100k
12/100Oklahoma 17.3 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataMcClain County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
6,401 (2015-2019) → 6,803 (2020-2024)
+6.3%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
77.1% (2015-2019) → 89.8% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
High school diploma or higherWorsening
83.3% (2015-2019) → 77.2% (2020-2024)
−6.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Child poverty rateWorsening
18.2% (2015-2019) → 23.0% (2020-2024)
+4.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
21.8% (2015-2019) → 17.1% (2020-2024)
−4.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Average commute timeImproving
23.9 min (2015-2019) → 19.2 min (2020-2024)
−20%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Purcell, Oklahoma improved on 2 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 13 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Broadband+13 points77.1% → 89.8%
Household income+19%$53,155 → $63,457

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Purcell, Oklahoma between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	23.9 min2015-2019	19.2 min2020-2024	−4.8 min	Within the margin of error	89%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.3%2015-2019	17.2%2020-2024	−1.1 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Broadband subscriptions	77.1%2015-2019	89.8%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	71%
Child poverty rate	18.2%2015-2019	23.0%2020-2024	+4.8 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Effective property tax rate	0.97%2015-2019	0.79%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	53%
High school diploma or higher	83.3%2015-2019	77.2%2020-2024	−6.1 points	Within the margin of error	4%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	2.7×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	84%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4582015-2019	0.4102020-2024	−0.047	Within the margin of error	83%
Median household income	$53,1552015-2019	$63,4572020-2024	+19%	Improved	32%
Poverty rate	15.3%2015-2019	14.0%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	56%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	36.3%2015-2019	35.8%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Within the margin of error	59%
Rent-burdened households	55.3%2015-2019	56.1%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	53%
Unemployment rate	6.6%2015-2019	4.0%2020-2024	−2.6 points	Within the margin of error	87%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	21.8%2015-2019	17.1%2020-2024	−4.6 points	Within the margin of error	85%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Purcell, Oklahoma five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Purcell, Oklahoma in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Purcell, Oklahoma itself moved +6.7 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

6,803 residents (±35)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

2,548 households (±185)

Purcell, Oklahoma
Oklahoma share

Under $25k13%†321
$25k–50k25%635
$50k–75k25%640

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

2,548 households (±185)

Purcell, Oklahoma
Oklahoma share

Own57%1,453
Rent43%1,095

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

2,903 workers (±276)

Purcell, Oklahoma
Oklahoma share

Drive alone82%2,382
Carpool9.4%†272
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Oklahoma City, OK

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of McClain County, the county holding most of Purcell's residents.

McClain County has 958 employer establishments, 203 for every 10,000 residents (0.82× the US rate of 248; 0.86× Oklahoma's), with 9,219 paid employees at an average annual pay of $43,154. The Census Bureau also counts 4,524 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 958; 4,524 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 203; US 248 · Oklahoma 237
Paid employees: 9,219
Average annual pay: $43,154; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of McClain County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	112	23.8	1.54×More than typical	570	$58,761	501
Restaurants and other eating places	74	15.7	0.86×About typical	1,121	$19,145	11
Ambulatory health care services	62	13.2	0.63×Fewer than typical	502	$43,076	172
Building equipment contractors	56	11.9	1.98×More than typical	285	$50,165	82
Lessors of real estate	48	10.2	0.83×About typical	104	$46,260	402
Religious organizations	41	8.7	1.57×More than typical	304	$15,865	—
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	39	8.3	2.51×More than typical	222	$49,568	46
Limited-service restaurants	36	7.6	0.95×About typical	697	$17,624	—
Construction of buildings	35	7.4	0.98×About typical	180	$62,011	172
Truck transportation	32	6.8	1.34×More than typical	184	$51,560	125
Full-service restaurants	29	6.2	0.80×About typical	399	$21,852	4
Gasoline stations	27	5.7	1.77×More than typical	235	$23,191	—

Rank places for an industry Open McClain County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 47,084 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Purcell, Oklahoma: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

48.2KFY2021
5KFY2022

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Purcell, Oklahoma, so they do not add up across cities.

Purcell, Oklahoma's figures are part of those of McClain County, OK and Cleveland County, OK ($167.2M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Purcell is mostly in McClain County.

See federal money in McClain County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Purcell, Oklahoma is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Tom ColeR-OK-4 · 100% of residentsWith party 96%Missed 1.2%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

McClain County51100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Oklahoma City, OK52

Other cities and towns in McClain County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/4061150

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends