Counties in Arkansas by unemployment rate

Phillips County had the highest unemployment rate of 75 counties in July 2026, at 8.5%. Madison County had the lowest, at 3.5%. The median was 4.7% and the figure for Arkansas was 4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest8.5Phillips County
Median4.775 counties
Arkansas4History

Top 40 counties, July 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Phillips CountyPhillips County: 8.5 %8.5Desha CountyDesha County: 7.8 %7.8Chicot CountyChicot County: 6.9 %6.9Nevada CountyNevada County: 6.8 %6.8Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 6.5 %6.5Izard CountyIzard County: 6.4 %6.4Johnson CountyJohnson County: 6.3 %6.3Marion CountyMarion County: 6.3 %6.3Lee CountyLee County: 6.2 %6.2Ashley CountyAshley County: 6.1 %6.1Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 6.1 %6.1Crittenden CountyCrittenden County: 5.9 %5.9Bradley CountyBradley County: 5.7 %5.7St. Francis CountySt. Francis County: 5.7 %5.7Howard CountyHoward County: 5.6 %5.6Monroe CountyMonroe County: 5.6 %5.6Pope CountyPope County: 5.6 %5.6Stone CountyStone County: 5.6 %5.6Columbia CountyColumbia County: 5.5 %5.5Fulton CountyFulton County: 5.5 %5.5Van Buren CountyVan Buren County: 5.5 %5.5Clark CountyClark County: 5.4 %5.4Newton CountyNewton County: 5.3 %5.3Union CountyUnion County: 5.3 %5.3Lafayette CountyLafayette County: 5.2 %5.2Polk CountyPolk County: 5.2 %5.2Ouachita CountyOuachita County: 5.1 %5.1Cleveland CountyCleveland County: 5 %5Drew CountyDrew County: 5 %5Miller CountyMiller County: 5 %5Mississippi CountyMississippi County: 5 %5Montgomery CountyMontgomery County: 5 %5Pike CountyPike County: 5 %5Franklin CountyFranklin County: 4.9 %4.9Cleburne CountyCleburne County: 4.8 %4.8Hempstead CountyHempstead County: 4.8 %4.8Sharp CountySharp County: 4.8 %4.8Dallas CountyDallas County: 4.7 %4.7Greene CountyGreene County: 4.7 %4.7Hot Spring CountyHot Spring County: 4.7 %4.7
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesJuly 2026 (%)Change on July 2025
1Phillips County8.5+0.2 pts
2Desha County7.8+0.1 pts
3Chicot County6.9+0.4 pts
4Nevada County6.8+0.5 pts
5Jefferson County6.5-0.4 pts
6Izard County6.4-0.5 pts
7Johnson County6.3+0.2 pts
7Marion County6.3-0.5 pts
9Lee County6.2-0.7 pts
10Ashley County6.1-0.5 pts
10Lincoln County6.1-0.2 pts
12Crittenden County5.9-0.6 pts
13Bradley County5.7-1.4 pts
13St. Francis County5.7-0.5 pts
15Howard County5.60 pts
15Monroe County5.6-0.3 pts
15Pope County5.6-0.1 pts
15Stone County5.6-0.6 pts
19Columbia County5.5-0.3 pts
19Fulton County5.5-0.3 pts
19Van Buren County5.50 pts
22Clark County5.4-0.5 pts
23Newton County5.30 pts
23Union County5.3-0.8 pts
25Lafayette County5.2-1 pts
25Polk County5.2+0.1 pts
27Ouachita County5.1-0.6 pts
28Cleveland County5-0.1 pts
28Drew County5-0.6 pts
28Miller County5-0.5 pts
28Mississippi County5-1.4 pts
28Montgomery County5-0.3 pts
28Pike County5+0.3 pts
34Franklin County4.9+0.1 pts
35Cleburne County4.8-0.3 pts
35Hempstead County4.8-0.1 pts
35Sharp County4.8-0.3 pts
38Dallas County4.7-0.1 pts
38Greene County4.70 pts
38Hot Spring County4.7-0.2 pts
38Logan County4.70 pts
38Perry County4.7-0.3 pts
38Searcy County4.7+0.2 pts
38Yell County4.70 pts
45Arkansas County4.6-0.3 pts
45Baxter County4.6-0.2 pts
45Clay County4.6-0.1 pts
45Jackson County4.6-0.5 pts
45Lawrence County4.6-0.1 pts
45Prairie County4.6+0.3 pts
51Boone County4.5-0.5 pts
51Crawford County4.5-0.1 pts
51Poinsett County4.5-0.2 pts
51Pulaski County4.5-0.1 pts
51White County4.5-0.1 pts
56Cross County4.4-0.1 pts
56Garland County4.4-0.2 pts
56Little River County4.4+0.2 pts
56Scott County4.4+0.1 pts
60Carroll County4.3+0.1 pts
60Conway County4.3-0.3 pts
62Craighead County4.2-0.3 pts
62Sebastian County4.2-0.1 pts
64Randolph County4.1-0.6 pts
64Woodruff County4.1+0.4 pts
66Calhoun County4-0.9 pts
67Faulkner County3.9-0.1 pts
68Grant County3.8+0.1 pts
68Independence County3.8-0.3 pts
68Lonoke County3.80 pts
68Sevier County3.80 pts
72Saline County3.70 pts
72Washington County3.7-0.1 pts
74Benton County3.50 pts
74Madison County3.5-0.1 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Unemployed people as a percentage of the labour force, using the survey definition of unemployment: without work, available and looking for work. Spain: EPA, aged 16 and over. EU: Labour Force Survey, aged 15 to 74. United States: civilian labour force aged 16 and over, from the Current Population Survey for the nation and from BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics models, consistent with that survey, for states and counties. Other countries and the World: ILO modelled estimates published by the World Bank, aged 15 and over.

Survey-based. Available for Spain, regions, provinces, EU countries, US states and US counties, not Spanish municipalities. For municipalities use registered_unemployment_rate. US national and state rates are seasonally adjusted; county rates are not. Countries without a national or Eurostat series get the annual ILO modelled estimate, a model output rather than a survey result.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Phillips County, with 8.5% in July 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Madison County, with 3.5% in July 2026.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Unemployment rate: other rankings

Counties in Arkansas: more rankings