The 10 Best College Towns In Arkansas For 2024


Believe it or not, America has the best colleges in the world. It's been proven by data (and surveys) that the U.S. educational system is of the highest quality

It's actually not even close and Arkansas is home to a handful of them.

While we could debate which colleges within Arkansas are the 'best,' that's not the goal of this post.

Instead, ride along with us as we determine which college towns in Arkansas are the best.

You know, the type of places where there's energy and stimulation, but the type of place you can walk around at night. The happiest, chillest, most downright fun places where you can send your kids off to college where you won't break the bank, or worry about their well being.

The 10 Best College Towns In Arkansas For 2024

  1. Monticello, AR
  2. Arkadelphia, AR
  3. Fort Smith, AR
  4. Fayetteville, AR
  5. Magnolia, AR
  6. Conway, AR
  7. Russellville, AR
  8. Searcy, AR
  9. Springdale, AR
  10. Siloam Springs, AR

While some of these may not seem like a 'real' college town per se, when you look at the numbers, it's hard to argue against.

And for those who live in Monticello, Arkadelphia and Fort Smith - we tip our hats to you and we'll schedule a tour for next week. You can see where Monticello ranks in terms of the best college town in America.

Read on to find out more or for more on Arkansas check out:

The 10 Best College Towns In Arkansas For 2024

Monticello, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Brandonrush | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 8,443
% Undergrad Pop.: 25.3% (2nd best)
Median Rent: $683 (2nd best)
Unemployment Rate: 395.9% (6th best)
Crime Rank: 4th best
More on Monticello: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: University of Arkansas at Monticello, Margaret's Hair Academy Inc

Arkadelphia, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Brandonrush | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
5
/10

Population: 10,354
% Undergrad Pop.: 47.3% (best)
Median Rent: $695 (3rd best)
Unemployment Rate: 356.5% (4th best)
Crime Rank: best
More on Arkadelphia: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Henderson State University, Ouachita Baptist University, ABC Beauty College Inc

Fort Smith, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Xltel at English Wikipedia | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility
3
/10

Population: 89,315
% Undergrad Pop.: 5.9% (12th best)
Median Rent: $798 (7th best)
Unemployment Rate: 609.1% (12th best)
Crime Rank: 14th best
More on Fort Smith: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, Arthur's Beauty College Inc-Fort Smith, Academy of Salon and Spa

Fayetteville, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Brandonrush | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
7
/10

Population: 95,022
% Undergrad Pop.: 13.2% (7th best)
Median Rent: $944 (15th best)
Unemployment Rate: 525.4% (10th best)
Crime Rank: 12th best
More on Fayetteville: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: University of Arkansas, Paul Mitchell the School-Arkansas, Blue Cliff College-Fayetteville

Magnolia, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
3
/10

Population: 11,044
% Undergrad Pop.: 25.2% (3rd best)
Median Rent: $674 (best)
Unemployment Rate: 375.4% (5th best)
Crime Rank: 10th best
More on Magnolia: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Southern Arkansas University Main Campus

Conway, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Photolitherland (talk)Chris Litherland Original uploader was Photolitherland at en.wikipedia | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 65,159
% Undergrad Pop.: 13.8% (6th best)
Median Rent: $942 (14th best)
Unemployment Rate: 300.0% (3rd best)
Crime Rank: 8th best
More on Conway: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: University of Central Arkansas, Hendrix College, Central Baptist College

Russellville, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Brandonrush | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
3
/10

Population: 28,946
% Undergrad Pop.: 16.2% (5th best)
Median Rent: $784 (6th best)
Unemployment Rate: 529.4% (11th best)
Crime Rank: 7th best
More on Russellville: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Arkansas Tech University, Arkansas Beauty College

Searcy, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Photolitherland | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
4
/10

Population: 22,961
% Undergrad Pop.: 17.3% (4th best)
Median Rent: $821 (9th best)
Unemployment Rate: 661.4% (13th best)
Crime Rank: 11th best
More on Searcy: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Harding University, Searcy Beauty College

Springdale, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Brandonrush | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 86,705
% Undergrad Pop.: 0.0% (16th best)
Median Rent: $920 (13th best)
Unemployment Rate: 440.6% (7th best)
Crime Rank: 6th best
More on Springdale: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Northwest Technical Institute, Career Academy of Hair Design, Ecclesia College

Siloam Springs, AR
Source: Wikipedia User Brandonrush | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility
5
/10

Population: 17,632
% Undergrad Pop.: 8.0% (9th best)
Median Rent: $892 (12th best)
Unemployment Rate: 262.4% (2nd best)
Crime Rank: 5th best
More on Siloam Springs: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: John Brown University, Career Academy of Hair Design-Siloam Springs

How'd we figure out the best college towns in Arkansas?

To crunch our data on Arkansas's best college towns, we used Saturday Night Science to decide which qualities (or rankings) make sense to use in the data, and then crunch the numbers for our rankings.

First off, we firmly decided that only cities with a 4 year college should make the cut -- so there has to be at least one college granting bachelors degrees in town.

You might be surprised to hear that there are only 16 places in Arkansas with an institution of higher learning with that criteria.

Source of data include OpenStreetMaps, the College Scorecard, the U.S. Census, and FBI reporting data to include the following factors:

  • Students Make Up Large % of the Population
  • College-specific Factors
    • Graduation rate
    • Tuition Cost
    • Student Body Diversity
  • Town Characteristics
    • Safety
    • Affordability
    • Income and Employment Opportunities
  • Things to Do
    • Bars
    • Museums & Libraries
    • Population Density

We ranked each city across each of the criteria, with one being the best.

We rolled up the individual scores into the category and ranked them again based on the category.

Finally, we took the average rank across each category, with the city posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title "Best College Town In Arkansas For 2024." We updated this article for 2024. This is our six time ranking the best college towns in Arkansas.

And it looks like Monticello placed Summa Cum Laude.

There You Have It -- The Best College Towns In The Arkansas

If you're looking for the best college towns in Arkansas, you came to the right place.

The best college towns in Arkansas are Monticello, Arkadelphia, Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Magnolia, Conway, Russellville, Searcy, Springdale, and Siloam Springs.

These places all have great college sports programs, tons of stuff to do, and are great places to raise a family.

For more reading, check out:

16 Best College Towns In Arkansas

Rank City Population
1 Monticello, AR 8443
2 Arkadelphia, AR 10354
3 Fort Smith, AR 89315
4 Fayetteville, AR 95022
5 Magnolia, AR 11044
6 Conway, AR 65159
7 Russellville, AR 28946
8 Searcy, AR 22961
9 Springdale, AR 86705
10 Siloam Springs, AR 17632
11 Little Rock, AR 202218
12 Jonesboro, AR 78379
13 Clarksville, AR 9453
14 Batesville, AR 11163
15 Pine Bluff, AR 41172
16 Paragould, AR 29690

Best College Towns By State

Enjoy The Snack?