Census-designated place · Ashley County, Arkansas

North Crossett, Arkansas

North Crossett is a census-designated place in Ashley County, Arkansas. It has 2,556 residents. North Crossett, Arkansas has a quality-of-life score of 7 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,541 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Arkansas it ranks #170 of 218 cities and towns. It ranks best on pharmacies (high), time spent in the emergency room (low) and homicide rate (low). It ranks worst on mental health care shortage (high), restaurants and bars (low) and frequent mental distress (high).

7Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,541 of 15,651 cities and towns
Arkansas: #170 of 218 in AR
Population: 2,556 (2020-2024)
Land area: 10 mi²
Density: 245.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 0550240

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 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.

Safety30#10,892/15,637
Economy5#14,864/15,631
Housing98#328/14,977
Health4#14,938/15,609
Healthcare13#13,572/15,650
Environment22#12,098/15,453
Education3#15,197/15,649
Infrastructure20#12,524/15,650
Community11#13,888/15,651
Leisure & amenities8#14,336/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where North Crossett, Arkansas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Ashley 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

Pharmacies · high3.9 /10k
99/100Arkansas 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsAshley County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low106 min
94/100Arkansas 165 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesAshley County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Arkansas 7.0 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataAshley County value
Social associations · high15.3 /10k
92/100Arkansas 11.7 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAshley County value
Public transit commuters · high3.3%
89/100Arkansas 0.3%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301High uncertainty
Home price to income ratio · low2.1×
88/100Arkansas 3.1×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077

Weaknesses

Mental health care shortage · high21.0
0/100Arkansas 12.8United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationAshley County value
Restaurants and bars · low2.8 /10k
2/100Arkansas 7.7 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsAshley County value
Frequent mental distress · high23.5%
2/100Arkansas 20.7%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Access to exercise opportunities · low28.1%
2/100Arkansas 63.4%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAshley County value
Physical inactivity · high41.4%
2/100Arkansas 34.4%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Median household income · low$32,917
2/100Arkansas $62,146United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,802 (2015-2019) → 2,556 (2020-2024)
−8.8%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
70.8% (2015-2019) → 87.2% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
28.6% (2015-2019) → 43.8% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
45.3% (2015-2019) → 57.7% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
1.3× (2015-2019) → 2.1× (2020-2024)
+62%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Child poverty rateWorsening
19.7% (2015-2019) → 32.0% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%

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, North Crossett, Arkansas improved on 1 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 8 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.

Improved1

Broadband+16 points70.8% → 87.2%

Declined1

Household income−38%$53,516 → $32,917

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of North Crossett, Arkansas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.2 min2015-2019	23.9 min2020-2024	+3.8 min	Within the margin of error	15%
Broadband subscriptions	70.8%2015-2019	87.2%2020-2024	+16 points	Improved	83%
Effective property tax rate	0.58%2015-2019	0.55%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	22%
High school diploma or higher	84.7%2015-2019	86.5%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Home price to income ratio	1.3×2015-2019	2.1×2020-2024	+0.8×	Within the margin of error	30%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4022015-2019	0.4622020-2024	+0.061	Within the margin of error	13%
Median household income	$53,5162015-2019	$32,9172020-2024	−38%	Declined	0%
Poverty rate	17.8%2015-2019	24.4%2020-2024	+6.7 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Rent-burdened households	45.3%2015-2019	57.7%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	19%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	9.4%2015-2019	8.3%2020-2024	−1.1 points	Within the margin of error	60%

“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 North Crossett, Arkansas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of North Crossett, 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, North Crossett, Arkansas itself moved −17.5 points in standing on average over the same 8 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

2,556 residents (±493)

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

973 households (±137)

North Crossett, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Under $25k42%†413
$25k–50k25%†243
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

973 households (±137)

North Crossett, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Own64%619
Rent36%†354

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−15.4 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

890 workers (±200)

North Crossett, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Drive alone81%722
Carpool7.6%†68
Public transit3.3%†

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 Ashley County, the county holding most of North Crossett's residents.

Ashley County has 329 employer establishments, 180 for every 10,000 residents (0.73× the US rate of 248; 0.79× Arkansas's), with 4,418 paid employees at an average annual pay of $51,466. The Census Bureau also counts 1,068 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 329; 1,068 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 180; US 248 · Arkansas 229
Paid employees: 4,418
Average annual pay: $51,466; US $68,342

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

Religious organizations	21	11.5	2.07×More than typical	79	$24,418	—
Restaurants and other eating places	20	11	0.60×Fewer than typical	334	$17,608	9
Ambulatory health care services	19	10.4	0.50×Fewer than typical	257	$52,486	57
Specialty trade contractors	15	8.2	0.53×Fewer than typical	107	$42,972	106
Limited-service restaurants	14	7.7	0.96×About typical	251	$16,896	3
Banks and credit unions	11	6	1.87×More than typical	133	$56,669	—
Truck transportation	11	6	1.19×About typical	177	$49,825	59
Automotive repair and maintenance	10	5.5	1.09×About typical	54	$37,519	32
General merchandise stores	10	5.5	3.10×More than typical	257	$30,829	6
Construction of buildings	9	4.9	0.65×Too few to compare	227	$62,000	28
Offices of other health practitioners	8	4.4	0.72×Too few to compare	33	$34,818	19
Auto parts, accessories and tire stores	7	3.8	2.20×Too few to compare	43	$33,209	3

Rank places for an industry Open Ashley County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 18,254 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 $11.3K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in North Crossett, Arkansas: $4.44 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $11.3K
Per resident: $4.44; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 6.8%; 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

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service$11.3K100%

Top recipients

AMERICAN CLASSIC CONSTRUCTION INC.$7,05962%
KPEM LLC$2,52222%
AANTILIA LLC$1,78416%
SEWELL OIL COMPANY INC.-$29.200.0%

Spending by fiscal year

24.4KFY2017
23.9KFY2018
97.1KFY2019
9.2KFY2020
9.8KFY2021
3.5KFY2022
9.9KFY2023
15.1KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonmetallic mineral mining and quarrying · 2123$7,05962%
Support activities for forestry · 1153$2,52222%
Other transportation equipment manufacturing · 3369$1,78416%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 North Crossett, Arkansas, so they do not add up across cities.

North Crossett, Arkansas's figures are part of those of Ashley County, AR ($251.1K in FY2026), never added to them: 4.5% of that total.

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

See federal money in Ashley 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.

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

House

Bruce WestermanR-AR-4 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 0.4%

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.

Ashley County6100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Ashley 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
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/0550240

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends