The Salary Index
Salary data is based on the Tulsa, OK metropolitan area and applied to Tulsa using local cost-of-living adjustments.

Data Scientists Salaries in Tulsa, OK

Average Base Pay

$80,950/yr

26% below national average

Monthly

$6,746

Hourly

$39

Cost Index

75

Data Scientists in Tulsa, OK earn an average of $80,950 per year, with most salaries falling between $64,760 and $97,140 depending on experience, employer, and specialization. At 26% below the national average, Tulsa offers a more modest rate for this role, in part reflecting a local cost of living index of 75. For professionals evaluating a move or negotiating an offer, the headline salary is only part of the picture—what matters most is how far that income actually goes once taxes, rent, and daily expenses are factored in. The sections below break that down in full for Tulsa.

Salary Range

The chart below shows the full compensation spectrum for this role, from entry-level to senior positions. The highlighted center bars represent the 25th–75th percentile band where most professionals are paid.

$61K
Low
$81K
Median
$101K
High
25th percentile: $69K75th percentile: $93K

About Data Scientists

Data Scientists extract actionable insights from large, complex datasets by applying statistical analysis, machine learning, and domain expertise. They work at the intersection of mathematics, programming, and business strategy, helping organizations make evidence-based decisions. The role begins with data acquisition and cleaning—often the most time-consuming phase—followed by exploratory analysis to identify patterns and anomalies. Data Scientists then formulate hypotheses, select appropriate modeling techniques, and build predictive or descriptive models. These models must be validated rigorously against holdout data and evaluated using relevant metrics before being communicated to stakeholders or deployed into production systems. Effective data scientists are strong communicators who can translate complex findings into clear narratives for non-technical audiences. They use visualization tools to make data compelling and accessible. In applied roles, they deploy models into production, monitor model drift, and retrain as data distributions change. Research-oriented data scientists may publish findings or experiment with cutting-edge techniques from academia. The field requires deep statistical knowledge—probability theory, regression, classification, clustering, time series analysis—alongside engineering skills to handle data pipelines and compute infrastructure. Data Scientists work closely with data engineers, product managers, and business stakeholders, and must balance scientific rigor with practical delivery timelines.

What Data Scientists Do

  • Collect, clean, and preprocess structured and unstructured datasets
  • Perform exploratory data analysis to uncover trends and relationships
  • Build, tune, and validate machine learning and statistical models
  • Communicate findings through reports, dashboards, and presentations
  • Collaborate with engineering teams to deploy models into production
  • Monitor model performance and retrain on updated data as needed
  • Define metrics and KPIs in collaboration with business stakeholders
  • Design and analyze A/B experiments to evaluate product changes

Key Skills & Qualifications

  • Python or R for data analysis and modeling
  • Machine learning frameworks such as scikit-learn, TensorFlow, or PyTorch
  • SQL and experience with large-scale data warehouses
  • Statistical knowledge including regression, classification, and hypothesis testing
  • Data visualization with tools like Tableau, Matplotlib, or Seaborn
  • Experience with cloud platforms and distributed computing (Spark, BigQuery)
  • Strong written and verbal communication for presenting to stakeholders
  • Familiarity with experiment design and causal inference

Career Path

  1. Data Analyst
  2. Data Scientist
  3. Senior Data Scientist
  4. Principal Data Scientist / ML Research Scientist
  5. Director of Data Science

Data Scientists Market in Tulsa, OK

Salary Competitiveness

Tulsa currently pays 26% below the national median for Data Scientists. This gap can reflect a lower regional cost base, thinner employer density, or a surplus of qualified candidates relative to open roles—factors worth factoring into any offer negotiation or relocation calculation.

Cost of Living Impact

Tulsa's cost of living runs below the national average, which works in favor of this salary. Essential monthly expenses account for approximately 41% of take-home pay—a ratio that leaves meaningful room for savings, debt reduction, and discretionary spending compared with higher-cost metros.

Effective Purchasing Power

After adjusting for local taxes and cost of living, a Data Scientists earning $80,950 in Tulsa reaches a strong purchasing-power position. The effective standard of living this income supports is materially higher than the gross number alone implies—a useful data point for professionals comparing offers across metro areas.

vs. National Avg

-26%

Cost Pressure

41%

Purchasing Power

Strong

Take-Home Pay Calculator

Enter any gross salary to see how federal and state taxes affect your actual take-home pay, broken down by year, month, and week. Results use an estimated effective tax rate of 27% based on this location and income level.

$
Take-home (73%)Taxes (27%)

Annual Net

$59,094

Monthly

$4,925

Weekly

$1,136

Eff. Tax Rate

27%

A gross salary of $80,950 for a Data Scientists in Tulsa translates to roughly $4,925 in monthly take-home pay after estimated federal and state taxes. Set against monthly living costs of $2,003—covering housing, food, transportation, utilities, and healthcare—that leaves approximately $2,922 per month in disposable income. That margin, not the gross number, is what determines whether you can comfortably cover rent, build savings, and afford discretionary spending in Tulsa's current market.

How far does this salary go in Tulsa?

Cost of Living in Tulsa

Estimated monthly expenses for a single person in Tulsa, benchmarked against US regional price indices for housing, food, transportation, utilities, and healthcare.

Cost Index

75

Below Avg — US average is 100. Based on a single person (1-bed apartment).

🏠Housing / Rent$1,050/mo
🍔Food & Groceries$415/mo
🚗Transportation$110/mo
💡Utilities$160/mo
🏥Healthcare$268/mo
Monthly$2,003
Annual$24,036
Disposable Income$2,922

Financial Reality Check

This section compares estimated monthly take-home pay against typical living costs in Tulsa to show your real disposable income—the amount remaining after essential bills are paid each month.

Monthly Take-Home

$4,925

Living Costs

$2,003

Disposable

$2,922

Cost Index

75

Lifestyle

Comfortable

With a monthly take-home of $4,925, your estimated living costs in Tulsa are $2,003 ($24,036/yr). This leaves $2,922 per month in disposable income, indicating a comfortable standard of living. Tulsa's cost of living is 25% below the national average.

Overall, a Data Scientists earning $80,950 in Tulsa falls into a comfortable lifestyle tier and has meaningful room to save, invest, and absorb unexpected expenses without financial stress. With a cost index of 75, Tulsa is 25% more affordable than the national average, which extends your purchasing power. Regardless of tier, prioritizing retirement contributions, an emergency fund of three to six months' expenses, and incremental debt reduction will yield the greatest long-term financial stability—especially as living costs in Tulsa continue to evolve.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Data Scientists · Tulsa, OK26% below avg

Gross Salary

$80,950/yr

Take-home

$4,925/mo

Disposable

$2,922/mo

Lifestyle

Comfortable

Source: thesalaryindex.com · BLS data

Tulsa City Overview

COL index, rent benchmarks, top jobs, and affordability score.

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Salary estimates are based on BLS metro data and adjusted using cost-of-living indices.