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Forrest City, Arkansas

Forrest City is a small town of about 12,300 people in St. Francis County, Arkansas. It's the county seat. It has lost about 5% of its people since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.6 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Memphis, is about 47 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
12,308
down 5.2% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$92,000
St. Francis County prices up 17% since 2022
Household income
$35,689
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Arkansas
83
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Forrest City Medical Center
To Memphis
47 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 17% below the U.S. average in the parts of Arkansas outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.6 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood161 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 13.2 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 30.6 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town5 public schools: 2 elementary, 2 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byForrest City Medical Center is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityMemphis is about 47 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Forrest City meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

Worth a closer look

Forrest City has lost about 5% of its people since 2020, and about 1 in 10 homes stands empty (not counting vacation homes or homes for sale or rent). A shrinking town can mean bargains, but visit Main Street on a weekday and ask what's closed lately.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$92,000U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 17%St. Francis County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$805 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$35,689U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
39%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$484 a yearArkansas: $1,040
Homes built before 1940
5%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
1%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
83U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Arkansas outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 17% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Arkansas outside metro areas, not Forrest City alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
12,3082020: 12,977
Median age
36.9 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
12%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
21%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
14%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
14%U.S.: 6%
College students
5%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (29%); retail (16%); manufacturing (13%)
Unemployment rate
13%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
16 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
3%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
38%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Forrest City Medical Center, Forrest City, AR, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

5 public schools in Forrest City, run by Forrest City School District.

Colleges in or next to town: East Arkansas Community College (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Arkansas's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
53%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
84%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
32°F
July average high
92°F
Days 90°F or hotter
64 a year
Nights at or below freezing
60 a year
Rain and melted snow
51.8 inches a year
Snow
2 inches a year
Elevation
248 feet

Weather stations: Wynne (17 miles away) and Madison 1 NW (3 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Southaven, Memphis.

St. Francis County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 6, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.

Read about Forrest City's history on Wikipedia.

Know Forrest City?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Madison, AR713 people, 4 miles
  • Caldwell, AR419 people, 4 miles
  • Widener, AR202 people, 6 miles
  • Palestine, AR476 people, 7 miles
  • Colt, AR283 people, 8 miles
  • Haynes, AR110 people, 8 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.