Jonesboro, AR

Metro Area Profile

135,792 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Jonesboro, AR metropolitan area.

66out of 100
Area Score
Top 39% of 379 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
OpportunityTop 41% of 379 metros measured60
GrowthTop 11% of 821 metros measured75
Housing affordability470th of 822 metros measured92
ClimateTop 36% of 822 metros measured70
Physical resilience512th of 822 metros measured47
AccessTop 49% of 822 metros measured77
Economic stability536th of 822 metros measured40
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.2% and median household income $56,738, putting employment conditions in the middle range of published metro profiles.

993 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, essentially level with the prior year — steady rather than turning.

Rent takes 20% of median household income here, below the 30% threshold conventionally called cost-burdened, and the median home is 3.4 times that income.

At a glance

Population
135,792
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$56,738
Bottom 18% nationally
Density
93/sq mi
1465.5 sq mi of land
Median age
35.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Jonesboro, AR
Nearest major airport
BYH
44 mi · Arkansas Intl
Median home value
$192,200
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.2% is lower than 49% of the 379 measured US metros.

Employment grew 2.7% over the past year, to 66,259 employed residents.

Median household income of $56,738 is below 82% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$2,935$56,738Bottom 18%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,258$32,407Bottom 29%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate20.1%Top 12%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute21.9 minBottom 28%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher26.5%Top 46%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Employment66,259Bottom 24%of 379June 2026
Employment change (3 years)5.3%Top 4%of 379June 2026
Employment change (year over year)2.7%Top 4%of 379June 2026
Labor force69,189Bottom 24%of 379June 2026
Labor force participation61.9%Top 39%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$52,610Bottom 7%of 3812025 OEWS
Median annual wage$42,240Bottom 9%of 3812025 OEWS
Metro employment60,620Bottom 26%of 3812025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-0.1%Bottom 43%of 379June 2026
Unemployment rate4.2%Top 49%of 379June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032025/102026/064.32.3
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.2% in June 2026. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.
Largest occupations — Jonesboro, AR
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Registered Nurses1,990$78,940
Retail Salespersons1,940$28,960
Fast Food and Counter Workers1,900$26,260
General and Operations Managers1,470$69,370
Cashiers1,340$28,090
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand1,280$37,500

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $929 takes 20% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 3.4 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
19.6%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.4×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$929
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$192,200
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income3.39Top 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate60.8%Bottom 9%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±6159,334Top 35%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$23$929Bottom 40%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$7,249$192,200Bottom 41%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income19.6%Top 33%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate10.3%Bottom 42%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
75/ 100
Top 11% of 821 published city profiles
Permitting is increasing, measured from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 3% since 2020, reaching 138,152 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: only 14% of permitted units are in buildings of five or more homes.

At 7.3 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
993
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
7.3
Top 13% nationally
Year over year
−0%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
14.2%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
20202021202220232024138k134k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 91°F and January a low of 31°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 48.5 inches.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station JONESBORO MUNI AP, 9.3 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND5.2"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation48.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low31°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high91°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing43°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

47 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are earthquake, ice storm and drought.

Ice stormElevated
EarthquakeModerate
DroughtModerate
Winter weatherModerate
LandslideModerate

Low or minimal exposure: tornado, heat wave, cold wave, lightning, inland flooding, strong wind, hail, hurricane, wildfire.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

What this profile does not cover

Three things people look for are missing from every AreaProfile page, and each is missing for a reason rather than by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offences reported to police are published by department rather than by town, and only where a department reported every month of the year. No municipal department reports for this place — many smaller communities are policed by the county — so there is no figure to show. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Taxes and full cost of living
No public source publishes either with national coverage and a method open enough to check. Housing affordability above is computed from published rent, price and income, and excludes transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes — commuting cost in particular tends to offset suburban housing savings. Nothing here is individualised tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house. School attendance zones, insurance pricing and the character of a neighbourhood all vary within the places measured here.

Access

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 44 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Arkansas IntlBYH44 mi11,602 ft
Millington/MemphisNQA50 mi8,001 ft
Frederick W Smith Intl/MemphisMEM59 mi11,120 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
66
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 30, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.

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