Best PlacesStephens, Little Rock, AR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Stephens, Little Rock, 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.
Stephens, Little Rock ranks 5,812th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cell coverage by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Stephens, Little Rock
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.
Stephens, Little Rock's strengths and weaknesses
Where Stephens, Little Rock ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$671 a month, better than 96% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Short commute19.2 minutes each way, better than 84% of neighborhoods
Where Stephens, Little Rock ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Household income$41,157 median, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Health outlookBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Stephens, Little Rock
A household needs to earn about $33,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Stephens, Little Rock home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $41,157, 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 Stephens, Little Rock's effective rate of 0.88%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Stephens, Little Rock
Stephens, Little Rock's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Stephens, Little Rock.
Who works in Stephens, Little Rock, and how
Work in Stephens, Little Rock centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 77%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 12%
Life in Stephens, Little Rock
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Stephens, Little Rock.
What the weather is like in Stephens, Little Rock, month by month
Stephens, Little Rock sees roughly 74 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 53, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs March through May and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 53° | 42° | 33° |
| April | 75° | 63° | 53° |
| July | 93° | 83° | 74° |
| October | 77° | 65° | 55° |
Flying in and out of Stephens, Little Rock
The nearest airport, Bill and Hillary Clinton Ntl/Adams Field, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Memphis International, about 134 miles away.
The best schools in and around Stephens, Little Rock
Schools across Stephens, Little Rock average a C, better than 38% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Forest Heights Stem AcademyB+ · 50% proficient
- Pulaski Heights Elem. SchoolB · 47% proficient
- College Station Elem. SchoolF · 7% proficient
Top middle schools
- Pulaski Heights Middle SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Fuller Middle SchoolD− · 19% proficient
- Dunbar Magnet Middle SchoolF · 10% proficient
Top high schools
- Central High SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
- Joe T. Robinson High SchoolC− · 30% proficient
- Little Rock West High School Of InnovationD− · 12% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Stephens, Little Rock school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Stephens, Little Rock 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 Stephens, Little Rock against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Stephens, Little Rock
Is Stephens, Little Rock a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Stephens, Little Rock ranks 5,812th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on cell coverage, affordable childcare, and state finances, and lowest on distance from a big city and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Stephens, Little Rock expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $124,835. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $41,157 median income, cost of living beats 6% of neighborhoods.
Is Stephens, Little Rock safe?
Stephens, Little Rock is safer than 3% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,765 per resident a year.
Compare Stephens, Little Rock with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Stephens, Little Rock. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Stephens, Little Rock 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.
Stephens, Little Rock detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Stephens, Little Rock: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Stephens, Little Rock: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Stephens, Little Rock: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Stephens, Little Rock: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Stephens, Little Rock 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.