Cost of living comparison
compared to
Arkansas vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Arkansas is 14.3% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.2% less in Arkansas
- Groceries
-
pay 18.1% less in Arkansas
- Transportation
-
pay 23.7% less in Arkansas
- Housing
-
pay 14.6% less in Arkansas
- Childcare
-
pay 20.2% less in Arkansas
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 12.2% less in Arkansas
- Clothing
-
pay 6.8% less in Arkansas
Expenses including transportation, childcare, groceries, housing, entertainment and sports, and clothing are lower in Arkansas.
Arkansas vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Arkansas instead of United States, you would:
pay 4.2% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$17.64
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$10.93
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$2.51
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$1.93
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of restaurants
pay 18.1% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$3.23
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$5.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$3.55
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$4.65
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$2.02
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.62
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.36
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$1.52
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.07
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$1.07
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of groceries
pay 23.7% less for transportation
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$2.79
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$35.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$29,285.97
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$13.84
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of transportation
pay 14.6% less for housing
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$67.56
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$1,168.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$935.60
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$161.48
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of housing
pay 20.2% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$1,014.29
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$20,052.00
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of childcare
pay 12.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$5.21
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$5.04
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$8.05
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$39.35
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$12.86
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.8% less for clothing
|
United States
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$51.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$39.19
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$84.86
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$92.24
|
|
United States vs. Arkansas - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: November 2025
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