Moving from Tennessee to Arkansas
Tennessee to Arkansas is a move of about 430 miles. Median rent is $947 a month in Arkansas and $1,189 in Tennessee, and the median home is $188,000 against $286,700. Tennessee has no state income tax, against up to 3.90% in Arkansas. Property tax runs 0.55% of home value in Arkansas and 0.50% in Tennessee.
Moving to Arkansas costs
About the same
Tennessee and Arkansas work out within $50/mo of each other, renting on a $80,000 household income
Not your income? Run it on your own numbers
Worth knowing
Tennessee and Arkansas cost about the same to live in
Homes cost 1.5x more in one than the other, yet once taxes and everyday costs are counted the two land within $50 a month of each other. The sticker price on a house is a poor guide to what a place actually costs.
Tennessee vs Arkansas at a glance
| Tennessee | Arkansas | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home value | $286,700 | $188,000 |
| Median rent | $1,189/mo | $947/mo |
| State income tax | No state income tax | Up to 3.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.50% | 0.55% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 96 | 94 |
| Utilities | 72 | 75 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
Monthly cost of living: Tennessee vs Arkansas
| Monthly | TN | AR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $1,189 | $947 | -$242 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $0 | $245 | +$245 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $99 | $91 | -$8 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,765 | $1,716 | -$49 |
| Utilities | $295 | $305 | +$10 |
| Total | -$44 | ||
Cost to move from Tennessee to Arkansas
$1,600 to $3,800
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $450 to $700, against roughly $50 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 1-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Nashville is not Tennessee-average and Little Rock is not Arkansas-average, so a specific city can look nothing like its state. Compare metro areas instead to narrow it to 387 real places, including which side of a state line you would live on.
Run this with your own numbers
What jobs pay in Arkansas, after the cost of living
Estimates only, not advice. Housing and income figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2024); price levels from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024); tax rates are for the 2026 tax year, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Moving costs are modelled from published ranges rather than quoted. Every figure is a statewide median or average and will not match any particular household.