Tulsa Authority

Also known as: Tulsa Metro Authority

Tulsa is a middle-income mid-sized city of 413,794.

Tulsa is one of those cities that tends to surprise people who have formed their impressions from a distance. It sits in Osage County, Oklahoma, with a population of 413,066, and it has accumulated, over the course of its relatively brief civic life, a density of cultural institutions, educational infrastructure, and economic complexity that is not always anticipated from the outside.

Population and Demographics

According to Census ACS 5-Year 2024 data, Tulsa's total population stands at 413,794. The median age is 35.6 years, which places the city in a broadly working-age profile. Children under 18 account for 24.1 percent of residents, a figure the underlying data characterizes as family-oriented. The 18-to-34 cohort numbers 103,959 people, and the 35-to-64 group accounts for 146 of the next demographic band, reflecting a city with a substantial share of residents in their prime working years.

Economics and Housing Affordability

The Census ACS 5-Year 2023 data places Tulsa's median household income at $59,838, with a per capita income of $37,533. The unemployment rate, derived from the same source, is 6.1 percent, with 12,687 residents counted as unemployed out of a labor force of 209,604.

Housing affordability, derived from Census income, housing, and poverty data, presents a moderately encouraging picture by contemporary American standards. The home price-to-income ratio is 3.4, which the source characterizes as moderate, meaning a median-priced home costs roughly three and a half times the median annual household income. Rent, by the same analysis, consumes approximately 20.0 percent of median income, a figure the source classifies as affordable. Poverty, however, remains a significant presence: 75,228 residents fall below the poverty threshold, according to Census ACS 5-Year 2023.

Climate and Air Quality

The nearest climate station, Tulsa International Airport, located 5.5 miles from the city center, records an average temperature of 62.4 degrees Fahrenheit and annual precipitation of 43.4 inches, according to NOAA ACIS data. These are the numbers of a city that experiences genuine seasons, including warm, wet summers and winters that occasionally produce ice rather than snow.

The EPA AQI Annual Summary for 2024 offers a reasonably favorable air quality picture. Of 290 days with recorded AQI data, 223 were classified as good and 62 as moderate. Five days fell into the unhealthy-for-sensitive-groups category. No days were recorded as unhealthy, very unhealthy, or hazardous. The maximum AQI recorded was 112, and the median AQI was in the good range.

Broadband Infrastructure

According to FCC Broadband Data Collection figures as of June 2025, broadband availability in Tulsa is notably comprehensive. One hundred percent of the city's 206,960 housing units have access to service at 25/3 Mbps, 100/20 Mbps, and 250/25 Mbps thresholds. Access to gigabit-level service, at 1000/100 Mbps, reaches 76.6 percent of units. These figures reflect infrastructure coverage as reported by providers and do not necessarily indicate subscription rates.

Education

Tulsa supports a substantial higher education sector. According to NCES IPEDS 2022 data, 15 colleges and universities operate within the city. Among the most prominent by enrollment is Tulsa Community College, which according to College Scorecard data enrolls 12,228 students, charges in-state tuition of $3,792 and out-of-state tuition of $9,720, and reports a completion rate of 27.6 percent. The median earnings figure for graduates is also reported in the College Scorecard data. The range of institutions spans community colleges, research universities, and professional schools, giving the city a higher education footprint that is substantial relative to its population size.

Childcare infrastructure, per Oklahoma state licensing records, includes 95 licensed childcare centers, ranging from religious facility-based programs to early learning academies.

Arts, Culture, and Civic Life

Tulsa's arts sector, as documented through IRS Exempt Organizations data, includes 23 registered arts organizations. Among them are the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra Inc., the Tulsa Youth Symphony Inc., South Tulsa Children's Ballet Inc., and Spotlight on Opera, among others. This is a meaningful concentration of formal arts infrastructure for a city of this size.

The city also hosts 41 nearby attractions, according to compiled data, including the Philbrook Museum, which appears among the listed cultural destinations. Animal welfare is served by 8 registered rescue and shelter organizations, including the Humane Society and several independent rescue groups. Civic service organizations number 21 in total.

The IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File identifies the Greenwood Chamber of Commerce as the canonical chamber of commerce for Tulsa, a detail that carries its own historical resonance given the Greenwood District's place in the city's history.

Religious and Community Organizations

IRS Exempt Organizations data lists 566 churches operating in Tulsa, a figure that reflects the city's position within Oklahoma's broadly religious civic culture. The organizations range from long-established congregations to newer ministries, spanning a wide variety of denominations and traditions.

Banking and Financial Services

FDIC Institutions and Branches data documents multiple banking branches operating within Tulsa, including an International Bank of Commerce branch at 4202 S Garnett Road and a Prosperity Bank South Harvard branch, among others. The presence of both regional and national banking institutions reflects a financial services sector consistent with a city of Tulsa's economic scale.

Land Use and Zoning

Tulsa's zoning framework is codified in the Tulsa Municipal Code, available through Municode at https://library.municode.com/ok/tulsa. The city's zoning ordinance governs land use across residential, commercial, and industrial classifications. Zoning ordinances of this type, as the Municode corpus notes in a general definitional context, are understood to mean "the zoning ordinance of the city," a formulation that is simultaneously precise and, on reflection, entirely circular, which is how most municipal definitions work. The practical effect is that land use decisions in Tulsa are governed by a locally adopted code subject to amendment by the city council, operating within the framework of Oklahoma state municipal law.

Further Reading

• U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates — data.census.gov
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, AQI Annual Summary 2024 — EPA Air Quality System
• Federal Communications Commission, Broadband Data Collection, June 2025 — FCC BDC
• National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS Institutional Data — nces.ed.gov/ccd/
• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, FDIC Institutions and Branches Database — FDIC