Little Rock, Arkansas
Cost of living, housing, income, commute, climate, and safety — compiled for relocators researching Little Rock.
Key figures
Each metric shows how Little Rock compares with the U.S. baseline (ACS/BLS nationals where available; catalog-city averages for crime, climate, and commute). Income, housing, population, and crime are for the incorporated city (city limits), not the broader metro/MSA — unemployment is county-level (BLS LAUS).
- Population
- 202,739City limits · not metro/MSA
- Median household income
- $60,583Incorporated place (ACS)23% below U.S. avgU.S. $78,538
- Housing cost index
- 76ACS home+rent vs U.S. (100 = avg)24% below U.S. avgU.S. 100
- Median home value
- $221,200City limits (ACS)27% below U.S. avgU.S. $303,400
- Median rent
- $1,067City limits (ACS)21% below U.S. avgU.S. $1,348
- Unemployment
- 4.0%County LAUS · not city-onlyNear U.S. avg (4.2 pts)U.S. 4.2 pts
- Avg commute
- 20 min20% below U.S. avgU.S. 25 min
- Walk Score
- 3327% below U.S. avgU.S. 45
- Violent crime rate
- 1516.8annualized per 100k · citywide152% above U.S. avgU.S. 602.7
- Property crime rate
- 6122annualized per 100k · citywide98% above U.S. avgU.S. 3084.9
- Summer high
- 90°F3.0°F above U.S. avgU.S. 87°F
- Winter low
- 33°FNear U.S. avg (34°F)U.S. 34°F
- Annual rainfall
- 50.4 in53% above U.S. avgU.S. 32.9 in
- Sunny days
- 259Near U.S. avg (266)U.S. 266
Compare Little Rock with another city
Relocators eyeing Little Rock, Arkansas will find roughly 202,739 residents within city limits. Median household income is roughly $60,583, while the ACS housing-cost index sits near 76 — among the more affordable large markets in this catalog on housing costs (100 ≈ U.S. average). Budget for median rents around $1,067 a month before you lock a neighborhood.
Little Rock is compact enough that a single wrong neighborhood choice is easy to feel day to day — visit at commute hour before signing. Figures on this page are merged from Census ACS, BLS LAUS, FBI Crime Data Explorer, and NOAA Climate Normals — use them to compare Little Rock with nearby alternatives before you relocate.
Ozark foothills and river bottoms give the state a quieter, lower-cost profile. With about 50.4 inches of rain a year, wet-season drainage and mold checks are worth asking about. Plan on roughly 20 minutes each way for a typical commute; Walk Score is about 33. Unemployment recently ran near 4.0%, broadly in line with many large U.S. counties. FBI CDE violent-offense rates run comparatively high (~1516.8 per 100k annualized), so block-by-block due diligence is especially important.
Nearby & similar cities
Continue researching with these internal links — each page is a full data profile.
Sources
- Census / ACS: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 5-year (Little Rock city, 1600000US0541000)
- BLS: BLS LAUS LAUCN051190000000003 (Pulaski County, May 2026)
- Crime: FBI CIUS Table 8 (2019) city offenses known to law enforcement — rates per 100k; CDE API unavailable at enrich time
- Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 Monthly Normals (USW00013963 LITTLE ROCK AP ADAMS FLD)
Last updated 2026-07-28