Moving to Arkansas from West Virginia
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from West Virginia to Arkansas — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from West Virginia to Arkansas, you would find that Arkansas is 1.9% cheaper than West Virginia. A $75,000 salary in West Virginia would need to be roughly $73,500 in Arkansas to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from West Virginia to Arkansas.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $73,500
To maintain the same standard of living in Arkansas
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 10.6% more
Groceries
pay 13.2% less
Transportation
pay 17.2% less
Housing
pay 6.4% more
Childcare
pay 11.3% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 6.2% more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Key Indicator Comparison
How West Virginia and Arkansas stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
West Virginia performs better than Arkansas across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
Arkansas generally does better on health & wellbeing, though West Virginia leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
West Virginia performs better than Arkansas across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Arkansas performs significantly better than West Virginia across all infrastructure metrics.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
Arkansas performs significantly better than West Virginia across all employment & economy metrics.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
West Virginia generally does better on family life, though Arkansas leads in life expectancy.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Charleston | Little Rock |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 61°/47°F (16°/8°C) | 56°/38°F (13°/3°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 79°/67°F (26°/19°C) | 80°/61°F (27°/16°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 85°/75°F (30°/24°C) | 89°/70°F (32°/21°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 67°/54°F (20°/12°C) | 62°/44°F (17°/7°C) |
View all months
| Month | Charleston | Little Rock |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57°/43°F (13.7°/6.0°C) | 49°/33°F (9.7°/0.4°C) |
| Feb | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.5°C) | 54°/36°F (12.4°/2.4°C) |
| Mar | 65°/52°F (18.3°/10.9°C) | 64°/44°F (17.6°/6.8°C) |
| Apr | 72°/59°F (22.2°/14.9°C) | 73°/53°F (22.7°/11.6°C) |
| May | 79°/67°F (25.9°/19.5°C) | 80°/62°F (26.8°/16.4°C) |
| Jun | 85°/74°F (29.2°/23.3°C) | 88°/69°F (31.2°/20.7°C) |
| Jul | 88°/77°F (30.9°/24.9°C) | 92°/73°F (33.4°/22.7°C) |
| Aug | 86°/76°F (30.2°/24.5°C) | 92°/72°F (33.3°/22.2°C) |
| Sep | 82°/72°F (27.8°/22.1°C) | 84°/65°F (29.1°/18.1°C) |
| Oct | 75°/62°F (23.7°/16.9°C) | 73°/54°F (23.0°/12.3°C) |
| Nov | 67°/54°F (19.6°/12.0°C) | 62°/44°F (16.5°/6.6°C) |
| Dec | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.6°C) | 51°/35°F (10.7°/1.7°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Arkansas than West Virginia?
Headline costs are within a few percent between Arkansas and West Virginia; rent and dining are where you'll actually feel differences.
How much money do I need to move to Arkansas?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $18,375 in Arkansas for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Arkansas safe?
West Virginia performs better than Arkansas across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Arkansas compared to West Virginia?
Arkansas generally does better on health & wellbeing, though West Virginia leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Arkansas compared to West Virginia?
The average high temperature in Little Rock is 72°F, compared to 73°F in Charleston. Little Rock receives around 50.0 in of rainfall per year, while Charleston gets 44.4 in.
