Forrest City, AR

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

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2024 Population
22,400
US Senator
John Boozman
Republican Party
US Senator
Tom Cotton
Republican Party
2024 Median Age
40.1
1.01% 1-year increase
2024 Poverty Rate
28.5%
2.28% 1-year increase
2024 Median Household Income
$42,574
1.89% 1-year growth
2024 Median Property Value
$90,900
3.65% 1-year growth
2024 Employed Population
7,644
3.75% 1-year decline

About

None of the households in Forrest City, AR reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

98.1% of the residents in Forrest City, AR are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Forrest City, AR are East Arkansas Community College (625 degrees awarded in 2023).

In 2024, the median property value in Forrest City, AR was $90,900, and the homeownership rate was 55.5%.

Most people in Forrest City, AR drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 23 minutes. The average car ownership in Forrest City, AR was 2 cars per household.

Forrest City, AR borders Memphis, TN-MS-AR.

United StatesArkansas

Population & Diversity

Forrest City, AR is home to a population of 22.4k people, from which 98.1% are citizens. As of 2024, 2.2% of Forrest City, AR residents were born outside of the country (492 people).

In 2024, there were 1.39 times more Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents (12.2k people) in Forrest City, AR than any other race or ethnicity. There were 8.8k White (Non-Hispanic) and 389 Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

98.1%
2024 Citizenship
98.3%
2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 98.1% of Forrest City, AR residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Forrest City, AR was 98.3%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Forrest City, AR compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

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Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Forrest City, AR
  1. Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
    12.2k ± 114
  2. White (Non-Hispanic)
    8.8k ± 79
  3. Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic)
    389 ± 122
3.67%
Hispanic Population
821 people

In 2024, there were 1.39 times more Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents (12.2k people) in Forrest City, AR than any other race or ethnicity. There were 8.8k White (Non-Hispanic) and 389 Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

3.67% of the people in Forrest City, AR are hispanic (821 people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Forrest City, AR as a share of the total population.

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Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the MSA level, so we are showing data for Arkansas.
Most Common Origin
  1. Mexico
    66,711 ± 6,271 people
  2. El Salvador
    16,390 ± 3,135 people
  3. India
    10,242 ± 2,480 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Arkansas was Mexico, the natal country of 66,711 Arkansas residents, followed by El Salvador with 16,390 and India with 10,242.

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Foreign-Born Population

2.2%
2024 Foreign-Born Population
492 people
1.9%
2023 Foreign-Born Population
431 people

As of 2024, 2.2% of Forrest City, AR residents (492 people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Forrest City, AR was 1.9%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Forrest City, AR compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

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Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period
  1. Vietnam
    427 ± 108
  2. Gulf War (1990s)
    131 ± 66
  3. Gulf War (2001-)
    77 ± 50

Forrest City, AR has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 3.26 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Forrest City, AR.

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Economy

The economy of Forrest City, AR employs 7.64k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Forrest City, AR were Health Care & Social Assistance (1,150 people), Retail Trade (1,052 people), and Manufacturing (962 people), and the highest paying industries were Information ($83,333), Utilities ($71,154), and Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($53,597).

Employment

Occupations

7.64k
2024 Value
± 658
−3.75%
1 Year decline
± 12.4%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Forrest City, AR declined at a rate of −3.75%, from 7.94k employees to 7.64k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Forrest City, AR, are Production Occupations (832 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (712 people), and Sales & Related Occupations (672 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Forrest City, AR.

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Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Arkansas.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Arkansas (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

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Industries

Employment by Industries

7.64k
2024 Value
± 658
−3.75%
1 Year decline
± 12.4%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Forrest City, AR declined at a rate of −3.75%, from 7.94k employees to 7.64k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Forrest City, AR, are Health Care & Social Assistance (1,150 people), Retail Trade (1,052 people), and Manufacturing (962 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Forrest City, AR, though some of these residents may live in Forrest City, AR and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

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Median Earnings by Industry

$38,023
Median earning men ± $6,589
$30,190
Median earning women ± $3,179

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Information ($83,073), Wholesale Trade ($53,701), and Public Administration ($52,591).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($53,750), Other Services Except Public Administration ($40,241), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($37,716).

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Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Arkansas.
Y-Axis
2.24%
Year-over-year growth
Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 1.35M people employed in Arkansas. This represents a 2.24% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 8.69%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in Arkansas.

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Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments
  1. 44
    Retail Trade
  2. 33
    Other Services (except Public Administration)
  3. 25
    Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

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Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll
  1. $51.6k
    Health Care and Social Assistance
  2. $28.4k
    Manufacturing
  3. $23.2k
    Retail Trade

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

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Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Arkansas went to Donald J. Trump with 64.2% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (33.6%), followed by Robert Kennedy (1.12%).

John Boozman and Tom Cotton are the senators currently representing the state of Arkansas. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Arkansas is currently represented by 4 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Voting results are not available for Forrest City, AR. Showing the available data for Arkansas.
2024 Election Results
  1. Donald J. Trump (64.2%)
    Republican Party
  2. Kamala Harris (33.6%)
    Democratic Party
  3. Robert Kennedy (1.12%)
    Independent Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Arkansas went to Donald J. Trump with 64.2% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (33.6%), followed by Robert Kennedy (1.12%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Arkansas for each registered party from 1976 to 2024.

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Senator Elections

US Senators from Arkansas

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for Arkansas.
John Boozman
Senator from Arkansas3
Assumed office on January 3, 2011
Tom Cotton
Senator from Arkansas2
Assumed office on January 3, 2015

John Boozman and Tom Cotton are the senators currently representing Arkansas.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in Arkansas over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

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Education

In 2023, universities in Forrest City, AR awarded 625 degrees. The student population of Forrest City, AR in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 435 male students and 838 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Forrest City, AR are White (327 and 52.4%), Black or African American (265 and 42.5%), Two or More Races (19 and 3.04%), and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders (4 and 0.641%).

The largest universities in Forrest City, AR by number of degrees awarded are East Arkansas Community College (625 and 100%).

The most popular majors in Forrest City, AR are Liberal Arts & Sciences (153 and 24.5%), Truck, Bus, & Commercial Vehicle Operator & Instructor (99 and 15.8%), and General Biological Sciences (61 and 9.76%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2023 there were 1,273 students enrolled in Forrest City, AR, 34.2% men and 65.8% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 638 records, of which 65.7% were women and 34.3% men.

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Completions

Concentrations

Most Common
  1. Liberal Arts & Sciences
    109 degrees awarded
  2. General Biological Sciences
    61 degrees awarded
  3. Emergency Medical Technician (EMT Paramedic)
    23 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Certificate of at least 1 but less than 2 academic years recipients in Forrest City, AR was Liberal Arts & Sciences with 109 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Certificate of at least 1 but less than 2 academic years from schools in Forrest City, AR according to their major.

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Universities

Gender
Race
East Arkansas Community College
Largest Universities by degrees awarded
625 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was East Arkansas Community College with 625 degrees awarded.

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Student Diversity

In 2023, 231 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Forrest City, AR, which is 0.586 times less than the 394 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 327 degrees mean that there were 1.23 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 265 degrees awarded.

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Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

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Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Public, 2-year ($3,108) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($1,020) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($2,200) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

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Housing & Living

The median property value in Forrest City, AR was $90,900 in 2024, which is 0.273 times smaller than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $87,700 to $90,900, a 3.65% increase. The homeownership rate in Forrest City, AR is 55.5%, which is lower than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Forrest City, AR have an average commute time of 23 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Forrest City, AR is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$90,900
Median Property Value 2024
±$7,692
$4,319
Median Property Taxes
±$409

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Forrest City, AR the largest share of households pay taxes in the < $800 range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Forrest City, AR compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

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Rent vs Own

55.5%
Homeownership
2024
69.2%
Homeowners with Mortgage
2024

In 2024, 55.5% of the housing units in Forrest City, AR were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 55.2%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Forrest City, AR compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

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Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.
$42,574
Median Household Income
± $6,151
7.78k
Number of Households
± 627

In 2024, the median household income of the 7.78k households in Forrest City, AR grew to $42,574 from the previous year's value of $41,784.

The following chart displays the households in Forrest City, AR distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the < $10k range.

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Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Forrest City, AR is from Arkansas.
0.448
2023 Wage GINI in Arkansas
0.452
2022 Wage GINI in Arkansas

In 2023, the income inequality in Arkansas was 0.448 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.73% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for Arkansas was lower than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Arkansas in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in Arkansas across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

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Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024
  1. Drove Alone (81.7%)
  2. Carpooled (11.9%)
  3. Worked At Home (2.97%)

In 2024, 81.7% of workers in Forrest City, AR drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (11.9%) and those who worked at home (2.97%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

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Commute Time

23 minutes
Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Forrest City, AR have a shorter commute time (23 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 2.29% of the workforce in Forrest City, AR have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Forrest City, AR compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

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Car Ownership

2 cars
Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Forrest City, AR distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Forrest City, AR have 2 cars.

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Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

28.5% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Forrest City, AR (5.55k out of 19.5k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females < 5, followed by Females 55 - 64 and then Males 55 - 64.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Forrest City, AR is Black, followed by White and Two Or More.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

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Health

91.8% of the population of Forrest City, AR has health coverage, with 28.3% on employee plans, 38.6% on Medicaid, 13.6% on Medicare, 10.3% on non-group plans, and 0.978% on military or VA plans.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.3% were men and 50.7% were women.

Coverage

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 24.7% under 18 years, 21.4% between 18 and 34 years, 33.9% between 35 and 64 years, and 20% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.3% were men and 50.7% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

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Uninsured People

8.2%
Uninsured
28.3%
Employer Coverage
38.6%
Medicaid
13.6%
Medicare
10.3%
Non-Group
0.978%
Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Forrest City, AR grew by 3.81% from 7.9% to 8.2%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Forrest City, AR changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

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