Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Oklahoma ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety

CIdabelSafer than 28% of U.S. towns C+CushingSafer than 35% of U.S. towns

Schools

CIdabelBetter than 28% of districts in the state A−CushingBetter than 81% of districts in the state

Health

D−IdabelHealthier than 4% of U.S. towns DCushingHealthier than 11% of U.S. towns

6Idabel

15Cushing

Lists won, of 23 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Highest graduation rateSchools · 119 towns #96#10 Rent easiest to affordCost of living · 54 towns #27#4 Lowest obesityHealth · 134 towns #113#64 Most walkableOutdoors · 134 towns #83#35 Fastest growingGrowth · 134 towns #82#38 Best schoolsSchools · 128 towns #94#55 Most conserved landOutdoors · 131 towns #58#21 Most activeHealth · 134 towns #109#75

Left end = #1 in Oklahoma. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Idabel’s rankings →

Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Idabel$770/mo

Typical home $136K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.46% · or rent about $702/mo · Housing →

Cushing$840/mo

Typical home $145K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.66% · or rent about $798/mo · Housing →

The difference: $70 a month, about $800 a year, between Cushing and Idabel.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

IdabelCushing

Snow a year2″4″

January low29°F 26°F

July high94°F 93°F

Growing season (days)221d 217d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)40th 53rd

Outdoors & history

IdabelCushing

Trails4 mi 1 mi

Conserved land7.5%15.9%

Settled1902 1891

National Register places5 7

Archive photos15 12

Famous people born here12 7

Community

IdabelCushing

Library hours a week49 hrs 52 hrs

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

180 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

IdabelOK CushingOK

Idabel ↔ Cushing180 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Oklahoma average

IdabelCushing

People

Population 6,987Lowest 8,367Highest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census -0.7%Lowest OK: +5.5% +6.4%Highest OK: +5.5%

Median age 33±2.5Lowest 11% below OK 35.7±3.4Highest 4% below OK

Cushing and Idabel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 30.2%±3Highest OK: 24% 24.5%±3.2Lowest OK: 24%

Idabel and Cushing are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 16.5%±2.9Highest OK: 16.3% 16.1%±2.6Lowest OK: 16.3%

Idabel and Cushing are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 16.7%Highest OK: 28.3% 15.9%Lowest OK: 28.3%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 2.2%±1Lowest OK: 5.8% 3.1%±1.7Highest OK: 5.8%

Cushing and Idabel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $43,295±$7kLowest 33% below OK $44,136±$5kHighest 32% below OK

Cushing and Idabel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $134,800±$32kHighest 33% below OK $114,500±$20kLowest 43% below OK

Idabel and Cushing are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Rentmedian gross, monthly $702±$98Lowest 31% below OK $798±$71Highest 21% below OK

Cushing and Idabel are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $618Lowest 61% below OK $752Highest 53% below OK

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 45.4%±9.2Highest OK: 46.3% 38.1%±7.2Lowest OK: 46.3%

Idabel and Cushing are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 25.1%Highest OK: 15.3% 22%Lowest OK: 15.3%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 54.8%Lowest OK: 65.8% 55.2%Highest OK: 65.8%

Typical home builtmedian year 1977Highest 3 yrs older than OK 1958Lowest 22 yrs older than OK

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 20 minHighest 13% below OK 19 minLowest 15% below OK

Work from home 5.5%±2.5Highest OK: 9.4% 4.3%±2Lowest OK: 9.4%

Idabel and Cushing are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 31.3%Highest 23.9%Lowest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 17.3 miLowest 21.3 miHighest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.14Highest 0.88Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Hochatown (11%)Stillwater (12%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in CushingFew work in Idabel

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 7.5%Lowest 15.9%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 4.0 miHighest 1.3 miLowest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.2 mi 0.2 mi

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0Lowest 1Highest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 40.4Lowest 65.6Highest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #94 of 128 in OK #55 of 128 in OK

School district IDABELCUSHING

High school in town Idabel HSCushing HS

Students per teacherat that high school 18.8Highest 13.9Lowest

Oklahoma average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Idabel neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Idabel’s Town Square.

Cushing neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Cushing’s Town Square.

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Towns like Idabel

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Tecumseh6,332 people · $123K homes

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Sallisaw8,605 people · $134K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Idabel vs Cushing

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they part ways

Cushing places higher on 15 of 23 OK lists

A typical home costs about the same each month

What daily life feels like in each

180 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

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Towns like Idabel

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