Living in Durant, Oklahoma: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 16.4% below the U.S. average in the parts of Oklahoma outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.5 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood79 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 3.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 21 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town11 public schools: 5 elementary, 3 middle, 2 high schools and 1 other.
A hospital close byAlliancehealth Durant is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityDallas is about 86 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Durant meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

Boom town. The population is up 15% since 2020. Growing fast, with rising home values. Watch for chain stores and big apartment complexes: the small-town feel may not last.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $163,200U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 14%Bryan County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $953 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $46,812U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 46%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $1,133 a yearOklahoma: $1,599
Homes built before 1940: 8%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 16%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 83.6U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Oklahoma outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 14% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Oklahoma outside metro areas, not Durant alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 21,5522020: 18,728
Median age: 34 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 15%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 23%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 29%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 10%U.S.: 6%
College students: 7%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (22%); schools, health care and social services (21%); retail (13%)
Unemployment rate: 5%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 17 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 7%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 19%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Alliancehealth Durant, Durant, OK, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 1 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

11 public schools in Durant, run by Durant and Silo.

Colleges in or next to town: Southeastern Oklahoma State University (5,000 to 9,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Oklahoma's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 60%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 84%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 30°F
July average high: 94°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 82 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 70 a year
Rain and melted snow: 44.4 inches a year
Snow: 2 inches a year
Elevation: 675 feet

Weather station: Durant (1 mile away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Sherman, TXCity of 52,00029

Dallas, TXMetro of 8.5 million86

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Sherman, Dallas.

Bryan County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 6, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

7 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Durant Downtown Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Chickasaw National Recreation Area44 miles

Campus life. Check Southeastern Oklahoma State University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Durant's history on Wikipedia.

Know Durant?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Calera, OK3,100 people, 5 miles
Colbert, OK1,100 people, 12 miles
Caddo, OK1,100 people, 12 miles
Kingston, OK1,500 people, 18 miles
Denison, TX27,000 people, 19 miles
Pottsboro, TX2,800 people, 22 miles

Smaller places

Armstrong, OK123 people, 5 miles
Silo, OK413 people, 5 miles
Mead, OK248 people, 7 miles
Sand Point, OK (unincorporated)275 people, 11 miles
Kenefic, OK161 people, 11 miles
Achille, OK434 people, 11 miles
Cumberland, OK (unincorporated)533 people, 12 miles
Bokchito, OK631 people, 13 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.