Arkansas
Across all occupations in Arkansas, the median wage is $43,630 a year ($20.98 an hour) and the mean $54,890, May 2025. That median is −14% against the US median of $50,980. BLS counts 1,303,630 jobs in the state. The highest-paying occupation is dermatologists; the largest is fast food and counter workers.
All occupations: Arkansas vs the United States
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||
| Arkansas | Hourly | $12.99 | $15.33 | $20.98 | $29.74 | $45.55 | $26.39 | 1,303,630 |
| Annual | $27,020 | $31,880 | $43,630 | $61,850 | $94,740 | $54,890 | ||
| United States | Hourly | $15.00 | $18.07 | $24.51 | $38.71 | $61.81 | $33.54 | 155,495,730 |
| Annual | $31,200 | $37,590 | $50,980 | $80,520 | $128,560 | $69,770 | ||
Minimum wage in Arkansas
The wage floor is a separate question from these survey figures. See the Arkansas minimum wage page for the current rate, scheduled increases and tipped rules, verified against the U.S. Department of Labor.
20 highest-paying occupations in Arkansas
| Rank | Occupation | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dermatologists | $422,060 | $202.91 | 40 |
| 2 | Neurologists | $317,880 | $152.83 | 70 |
| 3 | Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $262,470 | $126.19 | 350 |
| 4 | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric | $259,320 | $124.67 | 30 |
| 5 | Surgeons, All Other | $254,940 | $122.57 | 280 |
| 6 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | $233,130 | $112.08 | 290 |
| 7 | Dentists, All Other Specialists | $232,730 | $111.89 | 40 |
| 8 | Nurse Anesthetists | $224,280 | $107.83 | ** |
| 9 | Family Medicine Physicians | $215,820 | $103.76 | 290 |
| 10 | Physicians, Pathologists | $214,100 | $102.93 | 130 |
| 11 | Dentists, General | $178,930 | $86.02 | 1,210 |
| 12 | Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | $168,970 | * | 250 |
| 13 | Pediatricians, General | $160,440 | $77.13 | 100 |
| 14 | Purchasing Managers | $156,450 | $75.22 | 930 |
| 15 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $140,600 | $67.60 | 1,220 |
| 16 | Medical Dosimetrists | $138,260 | $66.47 | 30 |
| 17 | Physicians, All Other | $136,880 | $65.81 | 4,290 |
| 18 | Marketing Managers | $136,520 | $65.63 | 1,860 |
| 19 | Pharmacists | $136,060 | $65.41 | 2,900 |
| 20 | Physicists | $135,820 | $65.30 | 60 |
Ranked by median; an occupation whose median BLS withholds or top-codes cannot appear here, however well it pays.
20 largest occupations in Arkansas
Occupation groups in Arkansas
Metropolitan areas in Arkansas
7 metropolitan areas touch Arkansas, plus 4 nonmetropolitan areas, with the all-occupations median of each. A linked metropolitan area has its own profile; nonmetropolitan areas appear here only.
| Area | Type | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR | Metropolitan | $46,610 | $22.41 | 275,180 |
| Fort Smith, AR-OK | Metropolitan | $39,560 | $19.02 | 95,560 |
| Hot Springs, AR | Metropolitan | $36,540 | $17.57 | 38,600 |
| Jonesboro, AR | Metropolitan | $42,240 | $20.31 | 60,620 |
| Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | Metropolitan | $45,790 | $22.02 | 358,210 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | Metropolitan | $46,890 | $22.54 | 611,670 |
| Texarkana, TX-AR | Metropolitan | $43,200 | $20.77 | 57,580 |
| North Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $38,010 | $18.28 | 119,300 |
| East Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $39,720 | $19.10 | 68,080 |
| West Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $38,940 | $18.72 | 85,640 |
| South Arkansas nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $39,770 | $19.12 | 117,350 |
Occupation pages for Arkansas
62 occupations have a dedicated Arkansas page with the state's percentiles, its metro table and a comparison with neighbouring states.
- Accountants and Auditors $66,330
- Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics $44,160
- Bartenders $25,090
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks $42,840
- Business Operations Specialists, All Other $61,240
- Carpenters $47,760
- Cashiers $27,670
- Computer and Information Systems Managers $127,220
- Computer User Support Specialists $46,360
- Construction Laborers $37,630
- Cooks, Fast Food $27,710
- Cooks, Restaurant $30,180
- Customer Service Representatives $37,840
- Electricians $49,070
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education $52,700
- Fast Food and Counter Workers $26,250
- Financial Managers $116,570
- First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers $61,230
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers $33,800
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers $58,100
- First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers $63,090
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers $36,950
- First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors $56,810
- Food Preparation Workers $27,660
- General and Operations Managers $74,050
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $51,550
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides $27,660
- Human Resources Specialists $55,010
- Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators $43,780
- Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $29,750
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand $35,920
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers $35,770
- Lawyers $98,880
- Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses $56,620
- Light Truck Drivers $37,080
- Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $27,960
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General $43,400
- Management Analysts $72,950
- Managers, All Other $87,520
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists $65,430
- Medical Assistants $37,760
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants $37,000
- Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education $59,570
- Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators $36,990
- Nursing Assistants $34,430
- Office Clerks, General $37,050
- Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers $47,670
- Project Management Specialists $77,170
- Receptionists and Information Clerks $34,840
- Registered Nurses $78,940
- Retail Salespersons $29,270
- Sales Managers $108,330
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel $50,570
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products $55,120
- Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education $59,660
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive $37,630
- Security Guards $35,770
- Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks $40,500
- Software Developers $104,490
- Stockers and Order Fillers $34,700
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary $28,790
- Waiters and Waitresses $24,680
Take-home pay and benefits calculators for Arkansas
FastCalc, a sister site, has these calculators for Arkansas. Each takes your own figures; this site computes nothing.
Source and notes
Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS Arkansas estimates.
*- Wage estimate not available.
**- Employment estimate not available.
- Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
- Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.
- Jobs per 1,000 is the occupation's employment per 1,000 jobs in Arkansas.