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Fort Worth vs. Little Rock

Fort Worth, TX  ·  Little Rock, AR

TL;DR

Fort Worth cost-of-living index is 99 vs 85 for Little Rock (US = 100). Median home: $330,000 vs $195,000. Median rent: $1,354/mo vs $825/mo.

Source: Zillow ZHVI/ZORI · Census ACS, 2026-06-03

Little Rock is 14% cheaper than Fort Worth overall.

Written by Jere Salmisto, Founder & Quantitative Systems Builder, CalcFi·Reviewed by CalcFi Editorial·Last reviewed 2026-06-03

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Home Price

TX: $330,000

AR: $195,000

Monthly Rent

TX: $1,354/mo

AR: $825/mo

COL Index

TX: 99

AR: 85

Median Income

TX: $66,200

AR: $56,600

Side-by-Side Comparison

Metric
Fort Worth
Little Rock
Lower / Higher

Median Home Price

$330,000
$195,000
↓Little Rock

Monthly Rent (Median)

$1,354/mo
$825/mo
↓Little Rock

Median Household Income

$66,200
$56,600
↓Fort Worth

Property Tax Rate

1.8%
0.63%
↓Little Rock

Cost of Living Index

100 = national average

99
85
↓Little Rock

Avg. Commute

27 min
22 min
↓Little Rock

Unemployment Rate

3.9%
3.8%
↓Little Rock

Median Age

33.9 yrs
36.2 yrs
↓Little Rock

What This Means For You

Headline insight

Buying Power

A $100,000 salary in Fort Worth has the same purchasing power as $85,859 in Little Rock— based on each city's cost of living index.

Housing

Homes in Little Rock cost 41% more (-$135,000 extra). Expect a larger mortgage and down payment.

Renting

Renting in Little Rock saves $529/month — $6,348 per year. Median rent: $1,354/mo in Fort Worth vs $825/mo in Little Rock.

Property Taxes

On a median-priced home, Fort Worth owners pay roughly $5,940/year vs $1,229/year in Little Rock. That's a $4,712 annual difference.

Local Earnings

Median household income is $66,200 in Fort Worth and $56,600 in Little Rock. Little Rock residents earn 15% more — but factor in cost of living.

Daily Commute

Average commute is 27 minutes in Fort Worth vs 22 minutes in Little Rock. Over a year, that's 2500 extra minutes (42 hours) of commuting in Fort Worth.

Salary Equivalence

To maintain the same lifestyle when moving from Fort Worth to Little Rock, here's the salary you'd need:

Salary in Fort WorthEquivalent in Little RockDifference
$50,000$42,929-$7,071
$75,000$64,394-$10,606
$100,000$85,859-$14,141
$150,000$128,788-$21,212
$200,000$171,717-$28,283

* Calculated using cost of living indices (national average = 100). Does not account for state income tax differences.

Run the Numbers

Mortgage Calculator

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Rent vs Buy

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Cost of Living

Full cost of living comparison tool

Home Appreciation

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Affordability Calculator

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Property Tax Calculator

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Fort Worth Calculators

→ Mortgage calculator for Fort Worth→ Rent vs buy in Fort Worth

Little Rock Calculators

→ Mortgage calculator for Little Rock→ Rent vs buy in Little Rock

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Fort Worth vs Little Rock: Common Questions

Is Fort Worth or Little Rock cheaper to live in?

Based on cost of living indices, Little Rock is cheaper overall. Fort Worth has a COL index of 99 while Little Rock scores 85 (national average = 100).

How do home prices compare between Fort Worth and Little Rock?

The median home price in Fort Worth is $330,000 vs $195,000 in Little Rock — a difference of $135,000 (41%).

What salary do I need in Little Rock to match my Fort Worth income?

Use the salary equivalence table above. For example, a $100K salary in Fort Worth is equivalent to $85,859 in Little Rock in terms of purchasing power.

Which city has lower property taxes?

Little Rock has a lower property tax rate (0.63% vs 1.8%). On a median-priced home, that means paying $1,229/year vs $5,940/year.

How does rent compare in Fort Worth vs Little Rock?

Median monthly rent: $1,354 in Fort Worth vs $825 in Little Rock. Annualized: $16,248 vs $9,900.

What is the median household income in each city?

Fort Worth: $66,200/yr. Little Rock: $56,600/yr (Census ACS).

Which city is better for remote workers?

Lower-cost Little Rock typically lets remote-workers keeping a coastal salary stretch further. Higher-cost cities usually win on amenities and labor-market depth.

Where does the data on this comparison come from?

Numbers are pulled from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI (home values, rent), the U.S. Census Bureau ACS (income), and BEA RPP (cost-of-living index). Each value is timestamped on the page.

How often is this comparison updated?

Source feeds refresh on their native cadence — hourly for mortgage rates, monthly for ZHVI/ZORI, annually for ACS. Page caches revalidate every 24 hours via Next.js ISR.

Does this comparison replace tax or financial advice?

No. This page is educational reference using public data and standard formulas. It is not personalized tax, legal, or investment advice. Consult a licensed professional for material decisions.

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Sources & Citations

  1. Zillow Research — Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) and Observed Rent Index (ZORI) — zillow.com/research/data
  2. U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates for median household income, median age, commute time — census.gov/acs
  3. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities (RPP) by state and metro — bea.gov/rpp
  4. Tax Foundation — effective property tax rates and state tax rates — taxfoundation.org
  5. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — unemployment rates and regional CPI — bls.gov
  6. Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) — Cost of Living Index — coli.org
Methodology & Assumptions

City-level metrics (median home price, median rent, median household income, property tax rate, COL index, commute, unemployment, median age) are sourced from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI[1], Census ACS 5-year estimates[2], BEA Regional Price Parities[3], Tax Foundation[4], and BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics[5].

The Cost of Living Index uses 100 = national average (C2ER methodology[6]): values above 100 indicate a city is more expensive than the national average, below 100 less expensive.

Salary equivalence uses the ratio adjustedSalary = salary × (colDestination / colOrigin). This accounts for cost-of-living differences but does not model state income tax variation, which can be significant.

Annual property tax is computed as medianHomePrice × propertyTaxRate. Actual assessed value may differ from sale price. Effective rates vary within a metro; these are metro-wide medians.

Commute-hours calculations assume 250 working days/year and a round-trip commute. "Tied" in the comparison table means values within ±1% of each other.

Last reviewed reflects the maximum retrievedAt timestamp across every sourced dataset feeding this page. When any source refreshes, the next ISR revalidation (every 24 hours) picks the new date.

Cost of living data sourced from [6] C2ER, [2] U.S. Census Bureau, and [1] Zillow Research. Tax rates from [4] Tax Foundation. Last reviewed 2026-06-03.