TULSA, Oklahoma
Population: 398,121
Unemployment: 4.8 percent
Fortune 500 Companies: 3
The buckle of the Bible Belt and one of the historic and significant hubs of the U.S. oil and gas industry, Tulsa continues to evolve. Though the three Fortune 500 companies based there all are energy-related—ONEOK, NGL Energy Partners and Williams Cos.—the local economy has done a good job of broadening, one reason it has added nearly 30,000 jobs since the recession. About a quarter of the student body at private University of Tulsa are international students.