Best Places72826, AR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 72826, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
72826 ranks 25,668th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and biking ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 72826
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.
72826's strengths and weaknesses
Where 72826 ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$481 a month, better than 95% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 78% of zip codes
Where 72826 ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Short commute33.2 minutes each way, better than only 16% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 72826
A household needs to earn about $31,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 72826 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $64,274, 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 72826's effective rate of 0.30%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 72826
72826 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 72826.
Who works in 72826, and how
Work in 72826 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 72826
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 72826.
What the weather is like in 72826, month by month
72826 sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 30. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 39° | 30° |
| April | 74° | 61° | 50° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 77° | 63° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 72826
The nearest airport, Fort Smith Regional, is about 40 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Memphis International, about 211 miles away.
The best schools in and around 72826
Schools across 72826 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Magazine Elementary SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
- Western Yell Co. Elem. SchoolD · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- J.d. Leftwich High SchoolD · 23% proficient
- Western Yell Co. High SchoolD− · 15% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 72826 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
72826 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 72826 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 72826
Is 72826 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 72826 ranks 25,668th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low property taxes, affordable childcare, and state finances, and lowest on biking and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 72826 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $128,523. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $64,274 median income, cost of living beats 45% of zip codes.
Is 72826 safe?
72826 is safer than 47% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $476 per resident a year.
Compare 72826 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 72826. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 72826 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.
72826 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 72826: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 72826: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 72826: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 72826: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
72826 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.