With Arkansas’s centuries-old farmland, abundant wilderness, and renowned hot springs, we’re not the least surprised it’s nicknamed The Natural State. The exceptionally low crime rates of its twenty safest communities, however, do have us in awe.
Based on the most recent FBI crime report, a violent offense occurs every twenty-six seconds in the United States. But, remarkably, three of the cities on our list—Greenbrier, White Hall, and Cherokee Village—reported fewer than one violent crime per 1,000 people in 2015. Looking at specific crimes, we were pleased to find that over half of the state’s twenty safest cities reported no robberies and all but two cited zero murders.
From small cities like Corning and Pottsville to larger ones such as Bella Vista and Bentonville, each community on our list has something unique to offer. What they have in common is relatively nominal property crime. In fact, on average, the twenty safest cities in Arkansas reported fewer than thirteen property crimes per 1,000 people—that’s almost half the national average. What’s more, fifteen of the cities on our list citied fewer than 100 total crimes of this type.
If you live in Arkansas or you’re thinking of settling down in the Land of Opportunity, we encourage you to explore our Arkansas Safety Directory. In it you’ll find numerous home security and crime prevention resources, as well as a map of the state’s least and most burglarized counties.
How We Chose the Safest Cities in Arkansas
To identify the twenty safest cities in Arkansas, we reviewed the 2015 FBI crime report statistics and population data. We eliminated all cities with fewer than 3,000 residents as well as any cities that failed to submit a complete crime report to the FBI.
From there, we evaluated the remaining cities. We narrowed it down based on the number of reported violent crimes (aggravated assault, murder, rape, and robbery) and property crimes (burglary, arson, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft) in each city. To level the playing field, we calculated the likelihood of these crimes occurring out of 1,000 people in each city.
Learn more about how we rank our Safest Cities reports.
1. Greenbrier ↔
Previous rank: 1
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.19
Property Crimes per 1,000: 2.43
2. Greenwood ↔
Previous rank: 2
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 1.61
Property Crimes per 1,000: 5.91
3. Bella Vista ↔
Previous rank: 3
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.57
Property Crimes per 1,000: 7.72
4. Centerton ↑
Previous rank: 5
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 3.09
Property Crimes per 1,000: 7.74
5. Shannon Hills ↓
Previous rank: 4
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 1.31
Property Crimes per 1,000: 10.48
6. White Hall ↔
Previous rank: 6
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.77
Property Crimes per 1,000: 11.79
7. Corning ↑
Previous rank: 14
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 3.85
Property Crimes per 1,000: 9.96
8. Gravette ↑
Previous rank: 13
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 4.01
Property Crimes per 1,000: 10.17
9. Brookland
Previous rank: N/A
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 3.43
Property Crimes per 1,000: 11.72
10. Cherokee Village ↔
Previous rank: 10
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 0.66
Property Crimes per 1,000: 14.89
11. Gentry ↓
Previous rank: 9
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 4.39
Property Crimes per 1,000: 11.41
12. Pottsville ↓
Previous rank: 8
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 5.45
Property Crimes per 1,000: 10.57
13. Austin
Previous rank: N/A
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.35
Property Crimes per 1,000: 14.97
14. Farmington ↑
Previous rank: 69
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 1.36
Property Crimes per 1,000: 16.66
15. Walnut Ridge ↑
Previous rank: 16
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.56
Property Crimes per 1,000: 15.97
16. Bentonville
Previous rank: Not ranked
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.13
Property Crimes per 1,000: 18.45
17. Warren ↓
Previous rank: 12
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 3.97
Property Crimes per 1,000: 16.76
18. Vilonia ↓
Previous rank: 7
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.69
Property Crimes per 1,000: 18.80
19. Cabot ↑
Previous rank: 23
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 1.80
Property Crimes per 1,000: 19.95
20. Lowell ↓
Previous rank: 11
Violent Crimes per 1,000: 2.56
Property Crimes per 1,000: 20.93
How safe is your home?
Wherever you live, feeling safe in your home can bring greater peace of mind and happiness. Whether your city made our list or not, we recommend adding extra security to your home with monitored security services provided by the nation’s leading home security providers.
To learn more about the home security options available to you, check out SafeWise’s picks for Best Home Security Systems of 2018 or select the city nearest you in the drop down menu below.
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