The local economy of Arkansas and its counties, metro areas and cities, from official US government data.
Unemployment rate
3.9%
August 2026, 4.2% a year ago
Average weekly pay
$1,291
Q1 2026, 1,305,223 jobs
New homes permitted
14,741
Last 12 months to August 2026
Net people moving in
+11,246
2022 to 2023
Newest data: -. Not seasonally adjusted: compare with the same month a year earlier. Click a row for its history.
The newest unemployment rate, pay, new home permits, moves and gas price for Arkansas, updated as new official numbers come out.
Unemployment for Arkansas is seasonally adjusted; for its counties, metro areas and cities it is not, so compare a month with the same month a year earlier. Pay covers all jobs that pay into unemployment insurance. Building permits count homes approved to be built, not homes sold. Moves count households by where they filed their tax returns in two years in a row.
The unemployment rate in Arkansas was 3.9% in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), compared with 4.2% a year earlier. 1,401,154 people were employed out of a labor force of 1,458,078. Among its counties, Madison County had the lowest rate (2.8%) and Phillips County the highest (7.2%, not seasonally adjusted).
Average weekly pay in Arkansas was $1,291 in Q1 2026, up 4.6% from a year earlier, across 1,305,223 jobs at 109,385 business locations.
Building permits were issued for 884 new homes in Arkansas in August 2026 (738 single-family and 89 in buildings with 5 or more units). From January to August the total was 9,605, down 7.0% from the same months last year, and 14,741 in the last 12 months. The most homes were permitted in Benton County (5,273), Washington County (3,550), Pulaski County (1,261) over the last 12 months.
Yes. From 2022 to 2023, 69,149 people moved to Arkansas and 57,903 moved away, a net gain of 11,246 (+5.0 per 1,000 residents). Most newcomers came from Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and most people who left went to Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma.
The weekly survey does not publish a separate price for Arkansas. In its region, Gulf Coast, regular gasoline averaged $3.92 per gallon in the week of September 28, 2026.