Best Places71730, AR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 71730, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
71730 ranks 25,478th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 71730
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
71730's strengths and weaknesses
Where 71730 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$481 a month, better than 95% of zip codes
- Short commute17.7 minutes each way, better than 92% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 79% of zip codes
Where 71730 ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 20% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 71730
A household needs to earn about $35,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 71730 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $58,852, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 71730's effective rate of 0.54%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 71730
71730's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 71730.
Who works in 71730, and how
Work in 71730 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 71730
71730 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 68% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 71730 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 71730, month by month
71730 sees roughly 78 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 56, with lows near 35. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 56° | 44° | 35° |
| April | 77° | 63° | 53° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 79° | 65° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 71730
The nearest airport, South Arkansas Regional at Goodwin Field, is about 9 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Memphis International, about 199 miles away.
The best schools in and around 71730
Schools across 71730 average a C−, better than 27% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Parkers Chapel Elem. SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- Hugh Goodwin Elementary SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Smackover Elementary SchoolB · 47% proficient
Top middle schools
- Washington Middle SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Barton Jr. High SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Norphlet Middle SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Parkers Chapel High SchoolC · 34% proficient
- El Dorado High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Junction City High SchoolD · 22% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 71730 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
71730 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 71730 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 71730 suits
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 71730
Is 71730 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 71730 ranks 25,478th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, short commutes, and state finances, and lowest on distance from a big city and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 71730 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $139,435. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $58,852 median income, cost of living beats 30% of zip codes.
Is 71730 safe?
71730 is safer than 27% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $684 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 71730?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 56 with lows near 35. That works out to about 78 pleasant days a year, more than 42% of zip codes.
Is 71730 good for families?
Schools beat 27% of zip codes, crime safety beats 27%, and childcare runs $481 a month.
Compare 71730 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 71730. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 71730 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
71730 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 71730: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 71730: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 71730: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 71730: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
71730 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.