OKC Among 11 Best U.S. Cities For Job Seekers

A recent study by Glassdoor ranks Oklahoma City No. 10 among the 11 best U.S. cities for job seekers.

College grads and mid-career professionals alike may find themselves in search of a city that offers the best of both worlds: great job opportunities and a healthy work-life balance.

Using those measures, as well as the cost of living and job satisfaction, employment site Glassdoor has crunched the numbers and come up with the top U.S. cities offering the best opportunities for workers. While some of the biggest American cities made the list, many of those top-rated are midsize metropolitan areas that are transforming their economies with tech and health care jobs.

That may provide some relief to job seekers who worry that opportunities exist only in expensive cities such as New York, which didn't make the cut in Glassdoor's rankings because of its high cost of living and so-so job satisfaction and work-life balance.

Those on the hunt for new career opportunities may want to consider some of the smaller cities that rose to the top of the rankings because they're places where typical workers can afford to buy homes and get a foothold on the economic ladder.

"These are smaller, midsize cities that have really great job markets that are growing," said Allison Berry, a spokeswoman with Glassdoor. "The thing that's standing out for us in the list is that bigger doesn't necessarily mean better."

Two cities famous for their high cost of living are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 on the list, primarily because their high scores for work-life balance and job satisfaction outweighed the pain of their sky-high real estate prices.

Among the top 11 best cities for job seekers, Glassdoor ranked Oklahoma City No. 10.

Oklahoma City, once dominated by the energy industry, has diversified its employment base in recent years. The city of about 1.3 million people has about 20,600 job openings, with a median base salary of $50,000.

While the pay may be lower than in some other cities, Oklahoma City is known for its affordability. Bloomberg ranks it as one of the cities where millennials can afford to buy a home. The median home value is $132,500.

Hot jobs in Oklahoma City include delivery driver, accountant and account executive, according to Glassdoor.

Here’s a complete list:

1. San Jose, California
2. San Francisco
3. Seattle
4. Boston
5. Washington, D.C.
6. Austin, Texas
7. Salt Lake City, Utah
8.  Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina
9. Minneapolis- St. Paul, Minnesota
10. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
11. St. Louis, Missouri