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Pawnee County, OK

Migration of people and income, 20222023 filing years

At a glance (2023)

Cost of living
90
10% below the U.S. average
Median home value
$125,700
national $303,400
Home prices, 5 years
+53.6%
over the 5 years to 2023
Monthly rent
$872
national $1,348
Homeownership
78%
national 65%
Unemployment
3.6%
national 3.6%
Household income
$57,551
national $78,538
Median age
41.7 yrs
national 38.7

Cost of living is the metro-area price level for Tulsa, OK.

The cost of living runs about 10% below the national average. The median home is valued at $125,700 (nominal). Home prices have risen about 54% over the five years to 2023. Median rent is about $872 a month. Unemployment averaged 3.6% in 2023 (national 3.6%). Median household income is $57,551. These figures describe all residents, not just tax filers, come from separate sources than the migration data on this page, and do not indicate why anyone moved.

Between the 2022 and 2023 filing years, Pawnee County, OK saw a net gain of 65 tax-filing households and a net gain of 205 individuals. Against a population of about 15,864, that is a net inflow of about 13 per 1,000 residents. On net, the area gained $4.7M in associated adjusted gross income (AGI, nominal dollars). The largest inflow, about 163 households, came from Tulsa County; the largest outflow, about 142 households, went to Tulsa County. In the prior (2022) filing year, the area saw a net gain of 358 individuals. These figures cover federal income tax filers only and do not indicate why people moved.

Net income (AGI)
+$4.7M
nominal dollars
Net households
+65
tax returns
Net people
+205
exemptions

+12.9 net people per 1,000 residents (population 15,864)

Income (AGI) in and out

Moved in$24.6M
Moved out$19.9M
Net +$4.7M (nominal)
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Pawnee County within Oklahoma

Pawnee County is outlined, with arrows tracing its largest moves to and from other Oklahoma counties. Hover any county for its figures; click to open it.

Net outNet in(AGI $)
Hover an area to trace its top 5 inbound (in) and outbound (out) moves.
Net income (AGI) that moved in minus out, in nominal dollars (not adjusted for inflation).Net tax returns (filing households) that moved in minus out.Net people per 1,000 residents, so larger and smaller areas compare fairly.
Loading map…

Where movers came from

  1. 1Tulsa County, OK163$6.9M
  2. 2Creek County, OK68$3M
  3. 3Payne County, OK54$2.2M
  4. 4Osage County, OK48$2.2M
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Where movers went

  1. 1Tulsa County, OK142$6.3M
  2. 2Creek County, OK59$3M
  3. 3Payne County, OK52$1.6M
  4. 4Osage County, OK47$1.7M
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Churn by county · both directions at once

The biggest two-way exchanges of filing households, 20222023. Moved in and moved out are gross one-way counts; net is the difference. Click a column to sort.

Tulsa County, OK163142+21+$656K
Creek County, OK6859+9-$8K
Payne County, OK5452+2+$551K
Osage County, OK4847+1+$439K

Counts are filing households (IRS returns), matching the lists above; income is nominal AGI. A dash means the IRS published only one direction of that exchange (small flows are suppressed), so no net is computed.

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Net migration by year

Net 2012–2023: +$33.5M (+1,289 people)
20122023
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Net AGI and net people by year (nominal dollars)
YearNet AGINet people
2012-$295K-210
2013+$3.1M+206
2014+$1.3M+20
2015-$777K-4
2016+$5.4M+142
2017+$5.1M+10
2018+$2.1M+161
2019+$3.6M+79
2020+$3.3M+182
2021-$4.4M+140
2022+$10.5M+358
2023+$4.7M+205
Migration in context

How big is this move, relative to the county?

In the 20222023 filing year, about 205 more people moved into Pawnee County, OK than left (counting tax filers and their dependents) — a net gain of about $4.7M in income (nominal) — in a county of 15,871 people.

Population
15,871
Census 2023 estimate
Net migration rate
+12.9
net people per 1,000 residents
A town of 10,000 would net about +129 people.
Net income per resident
+$295
nominal dollars
+$4.7M total across 15,871 residents.

The rate lets you compare Pawnee County, OK with a countyof any size: it’s the net flow divided by population. The IRS counts tax filers; population counts all residents, so read the rate as a scale indicator, not a literal share of people.

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Components of population change · 2023 (Census)

Where the county’s overall change came from. Census counts all residents; the IRS migration above is one slice of the domestic-migration component.

Births
+167
Deaths
-247
Net domestic migration
+270
Net international migration
+2
Total change
+192

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Figures are people, not tax filers.

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Income & cost of living

What a dollar is worth here

Prices around Pawnee County, OK run about 10% below the national average. In plain terms: $100 spent here buys about what $111 buys in the average American community. The figures below apply that to income, each compared to the U.S. average of $70,002 per person.

Income per person
$45,482
what people here earn (BEA 2023, nominal)
35% below the U.S. average
Price level
89.9
100 = U.S. average prices (BEA price parity)
everyday costs about 10.1% lower than average
What that income buys
$50,595
local income restated at U.S.-average prices
28% below the U.S. average
Cheaper than U.S. avgU.S. average (100)Pricier

Cost of living shown for the Tulsa, OK metro area (BEA publishes price parities by metro, not by county).

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Where the cost comes from · price parity by category

Index where 100 = U.S. average for that category. Housing is usually what separates one place from another.

Housing & rents69.4
Goods93.3
Utilities80.8
Other services95.7

Housing is measured from rents (including an estimated rental value for owner-occupied homes), so a run-up in purchase prices shows here only as it reaches rents. Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Covers all residents, a separate universe from the IRS filer income above. How the data works.

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Who lives here

The people of Pawnee County, OK

American Community Survey, 2019–2023 (a 5-year average of all residents, not just tax filers).

Median age
41.7
years
Median household income
$57,551
per household (ACS 2019–2023, nominal)
27% below the U.S. median
College degree
16%
adults 25+ with a bachelor's or higher
Poverty rate
17.0%
residents below the poverty line
Average commute
29 min
mean travel time to work
Broadband at home
77%
households with any broadband
Race and ethnicity (share of residents)
White 75%Hispanic 4%Black 1%Asian 0%Other 20%

White, Black, and Asian counts are people who are not Hispanic or Latino; Hispanic or Latino can be of any race. Shares are rounded and may not total 100.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Covers all residents, a separate universe from the IRS filer data. A 5-year estimate is an average over 2019–2023; compare years at least five apart, since consecutive windows overlap. How the data works.

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Housing · what it costs to live here (ACS 2019–2023)

Median home value
$125,700
owner-occupied homes
59% below the U.S. median
Median rent
$872
gross rent per month
35% below the U.S. median
Homeownership
78%
of occupied homes are owner-occupied
Home-price appreciation · FHFA index, 2023
Past year
+12.0%
price change, 2022 to 2023
Past 5 years
+54%
price change, 2018 to 2023

A repeat-sales index (how much the same homes changed in price), so it tracks the market over time rather than the current level. Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency, annual all-transactions HPI; the county series is FHFA’s developmental index.

New home construction · building permits, 2023
2new housing units authorized in 2023
Single-family 100%Multifamily 0%

Units authorized by residential building permits (new supply), summed from counties for the state and U.S. Permits are authorizations, not completions. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.

Home value is what owners estimate their homes are worth, not recent sale prices. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2019–2023), nominal dollars. How the data works.

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Local economy & risk

Jobs and natural hazards

Unemployment rate
3.6%
BLS 2023 annual average
Labor force
7,153
6,895 employed
Disaster declarations
1
major federal, 2023
most common: Severe Storm

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS) and FEMA. A disaster declaration marks federal assistance eligibility, not damage severity, and says nothing about why anyone moved. How the data works.

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Unemployment now
4.6%
April 2026 · ▲ 1.3 points vs April 2025
January 2024April 2026

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS). Monthly unemployment for this county, not seasonally adjusted. Updated every month, so it moves faster than the annual average above. How the data works.

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How Pawnee County, OK has voted. Certified returns, popular vote only. This is a separate dataset from the migration figures on this page.

YearDemocraticRepublicanOtherMarginTotal
20241,3555,405120R +58.96,880
20201,3635,267156R +57.56,786
20161,3444,729291R +53.26,364
20121,8134,2320R +40.06,045
20082,0634,5330R +37.46,596
20042,5644,4120R +26.56,976
20002,4353,386104R +16.15,925

Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab county returns (CC0). Margins are the popular-vote gap as a share of all votes cast.

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