City · Monroe County, Arkansas

Clarendon, Arkansas

Clarendon is a city in Monroe County, Arkansas. It has 1,820 residents. Clarendon, Arkansas has a quality-of-life score of 6 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,729 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Arkansas it ranks #183 of 218 cities and towns. It ranks best on students per teacher (low), grocery stores (high) and pharmacies (high). It ranks worst on math scores (low), reading scores (low) and traffic deaths (high).

6Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,729 of 15,651 cities and towns
Arkansas: #183 of 218 in AR
Population: 1,820 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 1,040.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 0513990

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety2#15,397/15,637
Economy2#15,267/15,631
Housing82#2,682/14,977
Health17#12,881/15,609
Healthcare35#10,172/15,650
Environment8#14,222/15,453
Education7#14,600/15,649
Infrastructure11#14,001/15,650
Community11#13,904/15,651
Leisure & amenities34#10,270/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Clarendon, Arkansas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Monroe County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Students per teacher · low7.7×
100/100Arkansas 12.5×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsMonroe County value
Grocery stores · high8.0 /10k
100/100Arkansas 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMonroe County value
Pharmacies · high4.8 /10k
100/100Arkansas 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMonroe County value
Suicide rate · low0.0 /100k
100/100Arkansas 17.9 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMonroe County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Arkansas 10.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMonroe County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.0×
92/100Arkansas 3.1×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077

Weaknesses

Math scores · low1.82
0/100Arkansas 2.77United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMonroe County value
Reading scores · low2.23
0/100Arkansas 2.89United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMonroe County value
Traffic deaths · high60.9 /100k
1/100Arkansas 20.8 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataMonroe County value
Premature death · high18,220 /100k
1/100Arkansas 11,156 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMonroe County value
Homicide rate · high20.1 /100k
1/100Arkansas 7.0 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataMonroe County value
Distance to an emergency room · high24.6 mi
1/100Arkansas 7.3 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMonroe County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
1,487 (2015-2019) → 1,820 (2020-2024)
+22%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
47.1% (2015-2019) → 74.1% (2020-2024)
+27 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
46.2% (2015-2019) → 20.0% (2020-2024)
−26 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
New homes permittedWorsening
2.7 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
45.1% (2015-2019) → 56.2% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
13.8% (2015-2019) → 3.6% (2020-2024)
−10 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Clarendon, Arkansas improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 11 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Child poverty−26 points46.2% → 20.0%
Broadband+27 points47.1% → 74.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Clarendon, Arkansas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	23.6 min2015-2019	24.9 min2020-2024	+1.3 min	Within the margin of error	33%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.0%2015-2019	11.7%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	20%
Broadband subscriptions	47.1%2015-2019	74.1%2020-2024	+27 points	Improved	97%
Child poverty rate	46.2%2015-2019	20.0%2020-2024	−26 points	Improved	97%
Effective property tax rate	0.58%2015-2019	0.70%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	6%
High school diploma or higher	81.3%2015-2019	83.0%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Home price to income ratio	2.4×2015-2019	1.9×2020-2024	−0.4×	Within the margin of error	92%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5212015-2019	0.4732020-2024	−0.048	Within the margin of error	83%
Median household income	$23,3652015-2019	$33,8182020-2024	+45%	Within the margin of error	80%
Poverty rate	28.3%2015-2019	23.9%2020-2024	−4.4 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	28.9%2015-2019	31.7%2020-2024	+2.8 points	Within the margin of error	34%
Rent-burdened households	45.1%2015-2019	56.2%2020-2024	+11 points	Within the margin of error	21%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Clarendon, Arkansas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Clarendon, Arkansas in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Clarendon, Arkansas itself moved −3.7 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,820 residents (±265)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

669 households (±92)

Clarendon, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Under $25k37%†250
$25k–50k25%†170
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

669 households (±92)

Clarendon, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Own65%437
Rent35%232

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+11.6 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

540 workers (±110)

Clarendon, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Drive alone84%454
Carpool9.1%†49
Public transit0.0%0

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Monroe County, the county holding most of Clarendon's residents.

Monroe County has 170 employer establishments, 262 for every 10,000 residents (1.05× the US rate of 248; 1.14× Arkansas's), with 1,245 paid employees at an average annual pay of $40,231. The Census Bureau also counts 589 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 170; 589 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 262; US 248 · Arkansas 229
Paid employees: 1,245
Average annual pay: $40,231; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Monroe County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	12	18.5	0.89×About typical	121	$57,430	35
Restaurants and other eating places	12	18.5	1.01×About typical	203	$18,724	—
Limited-service restaurants	9	13.9	1.73×Too few to compare	159	$16,321	—
Truck transportation	8	12.3	2.44×Too few to compare	25	$36,480	41
Automotive repair and maintenance	7	10.8	2.14×Too few to compare	13	$43,385	21
Gasoline stations	7	10.8	3.32×Too few to compare	53	$15,528	—
Banks and credit unions	6	9.2	2.86×Too few to compare	41	$49,171	—
Insurance agencies and brokerages	6	9.2	2.10×Too few to compare	14	$64,786	19
Religious organizations	6	9.2	1.67×Too few to compare	15	$20,467	—
General merchandise stores	5	7.7	4.36×Too few to compare	37	$22,270	8
Grocery and convenience stores	5	7.7	2.59×Too few to compare	101	$19,693	3
Individual and family services	5	7.7	2.75×Too few to compare	37	$22,838	—

Rank places for an industry Open Monroe County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 6,495 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Clarendon, Arkansas: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

0FY2017
337.8FY2020

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Clarendon, Arkansas, so they do not add up across cities.

Clarendon, Arkansas's figures are part of those of Monroe County, AR ($3.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Clarendon is mostly in Monroe County.

See federal money in Monroe County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Clarendon, Arkansas is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Eric A. "Rick" CrawfordR-AR-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 2.2%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Monroe County9100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Monroe County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0513990

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends