Arkansas’ 2023 per capita income up 5.4%; Northwest Arkansas top metro area

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by Michael Tilley ([email protected]) ago 0 views 

Northwest Arkansas’ 2023 per capita income of $89,095 ranked 16th among the nation’s 384 metro areas and was the top ranked metro area in Arkansas. The state’s per capita income of $69,810 in 2023 was up 5.4% compared with 2022.

U.S. per capita income in 2023 was $69,810, up 5.4% compared with 2022. Personal income and per capita income data for 2023, the most recent data available, was posted Nov. 14 by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

Per capita personal income is calculated as the total personal income of the residents of a given area divided by the population of the area. The BEA uses U.S. Census Bureau midyear population estimates.

In U.S. metro areas, per capita personal income – personal income divided by population – was up 5.5% in 2023, up from 2.8% in 2022. In the nonmetropolitan portion of the United States, per capita personal income rose 4.4%, up from 2.6%.

ARKANSAS METRO AREAS
Of the eight metro areas in or connected to Arkansas, all posted per capita income gains in 2023 compared with 2022. Northwest Arkansas was the only Arkansas metro area with a per capita income higher than the U.S. average of $69,810.

Following are the Arkansas metro per capita numbers ranked from highest to lowest, with the percentage increase, and the rank among the nation’s 384 metro areas, according to the BEA report.
• Northwest Arkansas
2023: $89,095
2022: $85,237
up 4.5%
U.S. rank: 16

• Memphis/West Memphis
2023: $60,083
2022: $57,193
up 5.1%
U.S. rank: 172

• Little Rock/North Little Rock/Conway
2023: $59,463
2022: $56,399
up 5.4%
U.S. rank: 181

• Hot Springs
2023: $52,506
2022: $49,461
up 6.2%
U.S. rank: 293

• Jonesboro
2023: $49,153
2022: $47,213
up 4.1%
U.S. rank: 338

• Texarkana
2023: $47,883
2022: $45,559
up 5.1%
U.S. rank: 353

• Fort Smith
2023: $47,206
2022: $45,780
up 3.1%
U.S. rank: 360

• Pine Bluff
2023: $42,135
2022: $41,764
up 0.8%
U.S. rank: 381

ARKANSAS COUNTIES
Of Arkansas’ 75 counties, 21 had per capita income declines in 2023 compared with 2022. Bradley County had the smallest decline at 0.2%, and Madison County had the largest drop at 7.3%.

Following are the top 10 counties in Arkansas based on 2023 per capita income, with the percentage increase compared with 2022.
• Benton County: $123,114, up 5.4%
• Pulaski County: $65,681, up 5.8%
• Arkansas County: $63,938, up 7.3%
• Woodruff County: $57,492, up 11.4%
• Union County: $56,838, up 5.7%
• Saline County: $54,581, up 5.6%
• Garland County: $52,506, up 5.8%
• Lonoke County: $51,952, up 5.2%
• Washington County: $51,797, up 2.3%
• Desha County: $51,547, up 3.5%

PERSONAL INCOME
Personal income increased in 2,814 counties, decreased in 295, and was unchanged in five counties in 2023, according to the BEA report. Personal income increased 6% in U.S. metro areas and 4.7% in nonmetro areas. In metropolitan counties, the percent change in personal income ranged from 17.3% in Oldham County, Texas, to a decline of 8.6% in Oliver County, N.D. In nonmetropolitan counties, it ranged from 38.7% in Sherman County, Texas, to a decline of 29.1% in Sheridan County, N.D.

Personal income is the income received by, or on behalf of, all persons from all sources: from participation as laborers in production, from owning a home or business, from the ownership of financial assets, and from government and business in the form of transfers. It includes income from domestic sources as well as the rest of world. It does not include realized or unrealized capital gains or losses.

Personal income is measured before the deduction of personal income taxes and other personal taxes and is reported in current dollars. County personal income differs slightly from the estimate of U.S. personal income in the National Income and Product Accounts because of differences in coverage, in the methodologies used to prepare the estimates, and in the timing of the availability of source data.