Quick quiz: which state's companies make more profit per employee than California, Texas, or New York? If you guessed Oklahoma, you're either really good at reading titles or you've been paying attention to one of America's most overlooked business success stories. From convenience stores that practically invented the road trip bathroom break to energy companies moving enough natural gas to heat half the country, Oklahoma's largest businesses generate over $60 billion annually while somehow flying under most people's radar.
How convenience stores conquered America from the heartland
Let's start with a love story… literally. Tom and Judy Love borrowed $5,000 in 1964 to lease a single gas station in Watonga, Oklahoma. Today, Love's Travel Stops pulls in $20.6 billion annually from 655 locations across 42 states. That's billion with a B, folks.
The numbers get even more impressive when you dig deeper. Love's employs 40,000 people nationwide and drops a cool billion dollars every year on new stores and remodels. They're planning to add 25 to 30 locations annually, because apparently America can never have too many places to buy beef jerky at 2 AM. By 2025, they'll install EV chargers at 20 locations after securing $83 million in federal grants, proving that even truck stop giants are going green… or at least, greener.
The surprising sophistication of truck stop empires
What really sets Love's apart isn't just the clean bathrooms (though truckers definitely appreciate those). Their 12 million square foot headquarters in Oklahoma City includes something called the Fresh Kitchen culinary innovation center, where food scientists develop menu items served to millions of travelers daily. Yes, there are actual food scientists working on your road trip chicken sandwich. They're also expanding RV hookups to over 100 sites, because apparently everyone decided to buy an RV during the pandemic and never looked back.
QuikTrip takes the convenience store game to another level entirely. With $11 billion in revenue from over 1,000 stores in 17 states, they've somehow made gas station employment… desirable? They've appeared on Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For list for 13 consecutive years, maintaining just 13% employee turnover compared to the industry average of 59%.
The secret sauce? They actually pay people well and treat them like humans. Revolutionary concept, right? Starting wages sit well above minimum wage, and the benefits package would make some tech companies blush. Plus, they're headquartered in Tulsa, where your salary goes approximately 47% further than in San Francisco (I made up that percentage, but you get the idea).
When craft stores become empire builders
Then there's Hobby Lobby, which sounds like it should be a quaint little craft shop but actually generates $9.1 billion annually from 1,035 stores. The Green family started with a $600 loan in 1972, and now they're paying 46,000 employees a minimum of $19.25 per hour, which they raised in 2025 because apparently they enjoy making other retailers look bad.
Here's the kicker: they operate completely debt-free and close every Sunday, proving you can be wildly successful while still giving everyone a day off. It's almost like treating employees well leads to business success or something.
Energy titans that literally fuel the nation
Oklahoma's energy companies make the convenience stores look small, which is saying something. These aren't your grandfather's oil companies either… well, okay, some of them literally are your grandfather's oil companies, but they've evolved.
Williams Companies leads the pack with a $69 billion market value and 33,000 miles of pipelines moving one-third of America's natural gas. Let that sink in: one company, headquartered in Tulsa, handles a third of the natural gas for the entire country. Their 2024 adjusted EBITDA hit $7.08 billion, and they're projecting even higher for 2025, somewhere between $7.45 and $7.85 billion. They also just acquired Gulf Coast Storage, adding 115 billion cubic feet of storage capacity, because apparently they're playing Monopoly with energy infrastructure.
The pipeline powerhouses nobody talks about
ONEOK (pronounced "one-oak," not "oh-knee-ok" as I learned the hard way) operates 60,000 miles of pipelines and pulled in $6.78 billion in adjusted EBITDA for 2024. They went on a shopping spree in 2024, acquiring EnLink Midstream and Medallion Midstream, plus launching a new liquefied petroleum gas export terminal joint venture. It's like they're collecting energy companies like Pokemon cards.
Devon Energy keeps it relatively simple with approximately $8.7 billion in annual revenue from their Oklahoma City headquarters. Meanwhile, Chesapeake Energy decided to rebrand completely, merging with Southwestern Energy in October 2024 to become Expand Energy Corporation. They're now the nation's largest independent natural gas producer, which sounds impressive until you realize most people have no idea what that actually means.
The energy sector's continued dominance in Oklahoma makes sense when you consider the state's history, but what's surprising is how these companies are adapting. They're not just drilling holes and hoping for the best anymore… they're building sophisticated infrastructure, investing in storage, and yes, even dabbling in renewables.
Tech companies? In Oklahoma? It's more likely than you think
Here's where things get interesting. Paycom Software, founded by Chad Richison in 1998, now generates $1.88 billion in revenue while managing payroll for 37,500 clients covering 7 million employees. That's a lot of paychecks.
What makes Paycom's technology special isn't just the numbers. Their Beti technology reduces payroll processing time by 90%, which means HR departments everywhere can finally stop pulling their hair out every two weeks. They maintain a 90% annual revenue retention rate, which in tech speak means "our customers actually like us enough to keep paying us."
The surprisingly vibrant tech scene
The company offers employees health insurance for $1 per pay period. One dollar. That's less than a gas station coffee. They're projecting 8% revenue growth for 2025 while expanding globally, proving that you don't need to be in Silicon Valley to build a tech unicorn. You just need good barbecue and reasonable housing prices.
Speaking of reasonable, Paycom is part of a broader tech ecosystem in Oklahoma that now employs 30,000 people at over 400 companies in Oklahoma City alone. These aren't just call centers either… we're talking legitimate technology companies doing actual innovation. Who knew?
Banking and electricity: The unsexy essentials
BOK Financial might not be a household name unless your household is in one of the eight states where they operate, but with $111 billion in assets, they're doing just fine without your recognition. Founded in 1910, they've been around long enough to finance Oklahoma's early oil booms and survive long enough to win the 2024 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award, placing them among the top 60 companies globally for employee engagement.
OGE Energy powers 905,000 customers and has invested $3 billion in grid improvements. They've also reduced emissions by 60% since 2005 and own 449 megawatts of wind generation. Oklahoma actually ranks third nationally in renewable energy production, which probably surprises people who think the state runs entirely on oil and natural gas.
Industrial innovation that actually matters
Matrix Service Company out of Tulsa might sound boring, but their $1.4 billion project backlog increasingly focuses on energy transition infrastructure. They're partnering with Chart Industries on hydrogen solutions, positioning themselves at the forefront of America's clean energy transformation. It's like they saw the writing on the wall and decided to build the wall of the future.
FlightSafety International brings some high-tech swagger to the aviation training world. Part of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway empire since 1997, they operate over 300 flight simulators globally. Their FlightSmart platform, developed with IBM, monitors 4,000 variables in real-time to personalize pilot training. This matters because the aviation industry needs 637,000 new pilots by 2025, and someone has to teach them not to crash.
The economic impact nobody expected
Here's where the numbers get truly wild. Oklahoma's real GDP hit $206.8 billion in early 2024, growing at 4.2%, the third fastest among all states. In 2024 alone, 274 businesses opened or expanded in Oklahoma, bringing $7.865 billion in private capital investment and creating 10,000 new jobs.
The state expects to add 42,000 jobs in 2025, with the fastest growth in:
- Leisure and hospitality (9.6%)
- Professional services (7.6%)
- Construction (5.5%)
- Healthcare (4.8%)
- Manufacturing (3.2%)
Why companies choose the middle of America
Oklahoma City maintains the third lowest business costs among major U.S. metros according to Moody's, while the state's corporate tax rate ranks fourth lowest nationally. But it's not just about being cheap. The central location provides efficient access to suppliers and customers across North America, which matters more than ever as companies rethink supply chains.
Enel North America just announced a $1 billion solar manufacturing plant in Inola, the largest economic development project in state history. American Airlines is dropping $550 million on its Tulsa maintenance base. Companies like Danish defense firm MyDefence and Austin-based Laundris are choosing Oklahoma over traditional tech hubs. Even Consumer Cellular is bringing 300 jobs to Oklahoma City.
The film industry spent $22 million in Oklahoma City during fiscal 2024, because apparently, Oklahoma makes a great backdrop for… well, probably not ocean scenes, but everything else.
The secret sauce of Oklahoma's success
"Oklahoma is the best place in the world to live, work and start a business," says Heather Turner, Deputy CEO of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce. She might be slightly biased, but the numbers back her up.
Remember that profit per employee statistic from the beginning? Oklahoma's Fortune 500 companies produce $1.3 million in profit per employee, more than 10 times the national average. That's not just beating California and Texas… that's embarrassing them.
The success stems from several factors working together. Low business costs help, sure, but it's also about available land, an entrepreneurial culture that encourages risk-taking, and perhaps most importantly, companies that choose to reinvest in their home state rather than chase perceived prestige elsewhere.
Beyond oil: The diversification nobody saw coming
While energy still dominates with six Fortune 500 companies, the economy is diversifying faster than you can say "horizontal drilling." The technology sector, aerospace (Pratt & Whitney is investing $255 million through 2028), biotechnology ($4.1 billion annually), and advanced manufacturing (including Stardust Power's lithium refinery in Muskogee) are all growing.
Don't forget Sonic Drive-In, operating 3,500 locations from its Oklahoma City headquarters and maintaining the classic American drive-in experience while generating $4.5 billion in system-wide sales. With 268 Oklahoma locations, those roller-skating carhops have become cultural ambassadors for the state.
What this means for everyone else
The Oklahoma business story offers lessons for other states and entrepreneurs. First, you don't need to be on a coast to build a successful company. Second, treating employees well (looking at you, QuikTrip and Hobby Lobby) actually works as a business strategy. Third, embracing both traditional industries and new technology creates resilience.
These companies prove that with the right combination of factors… low costs, strategic location, supportive business environment, and a willingness to invest in growth… any state can become an economic powerhouse. Oklahoma just happened to figure it out while everyone was looking elsewhere.
For those interested in learning more about opportunities in Oklahoma, the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber provides resources for businesses considering relocation or expansion. Because if a borrowed $5,000 can become a $20 billion truck stop empire, imagine what you could build with actual capital and a solid business plan.
The bottom line? Oklahoma's biggest businesses aren't just surviving in flyover country… they're thriving, expanding, and showing the rest of America that sometimes the best opportunities are hiding in plain sight, probably somewhere between a QuikTrip and a Love's Travel Stop, with a Hobby Lobby craft project in the back seat.
