McAlester is a medium-sized city located in the state of Oklahoma. With a population of 18,108 people and six associated neighborhoods, McAlester is the 29th largest community in Oklahoma.

Compared to the rest of the country, citizens of McAlester spend much less time in their cars: on average, their commute to work is only 16.57 minutes. This also means that noise and pollution levels in the city are less than they would otherwise be.

The citizens of McAlester are slightly better educated than the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns, with 21.02% of adults in McAlester having a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.

The per capita income in McAlester in 2022 was $27,708, which is middle income relative to Oklahoma, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $110,832 for a family of four. However, McAlester contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

McAlester is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call McAlester home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of McAlester residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Important ancestries of people in McAlester include Irish, German, English, Italian, and Scottish.

The most common language spoken in McAlester is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Native American languages.