Census-designated place · Garland County, Arkansas

Rockwell, Arkansas

Rockwell is a census-designated place in Garland County, Arkansas, part of the Hot Springs, AR metro area. It has 3,986 residents. Rockwell, Arkansas has a quality-of-life score of 33 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,542 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Arkansas it ranks #40 of 218 cities and towns. It ranks best on arts, entertainment and recreation (high), broadband subscriptions (high) and restaurants and bars (high). It ranks worst on food environment index (low), average weekly wage (low) and premature death (high).

33Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,542 of 15,651 cities and towns
Arkansas: #40 of 218 in AR
Population: 3,986 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 1,218.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 0560110

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.

Safety6#14,667/15,637
Economy26#11,576/15,631
Housing84#2,337/14,977
Health21#12,331/15,609
Healthcare31#10,809/15,650
Environment23#11,867/15,453
Education48#8,200/15,649
Infrastructure86#2,231/15,650
Community10#14,102/15,651
Leisure & amenities79#3,333/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Arts, entertainment and recreation · high9.7 /10k
95/100Arkansas 3.9 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGarland County value
Broadband subscriptions · high98.6%
95/100Arkansas 86.7%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Restaurants and bars · high13.0 /10k
91/100Arkansas 7.7 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGarland County value
Rent-burdened households · low44.8%
87/100Arkansas 44.8%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Arkansas 1United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGarland County value
Average commute time · low21.1 min
85/100Arkansas 22.5 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Food environment index · low6.2
5/100Arkansas 4.6United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGarland County value
Average weekly wage · low$906
6/100Arkansas $1,176United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGarland County value
Premature death · high13,802 /100k
7/100Arkansas 11,156 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGarland County value
Public libraries · low0.2 /10k
7/100Arkansas 0.7 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesGarland County value
Injury deaths · high133 /100k
8/100Arkansas 95 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGarland County value
Life expectancy · low72.4 yrs
9/100Arkansas 74.0 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGarland County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
4,744 (2015-2019) → 3,986 (2020-2024)
−16%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
87.3% (2015-2019) → 98.6% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
21.8% (2015-2019) → 14.4% (2020-2024)
−7.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
25.6% (2015-2019) → 29.9% (2020-2024)
+4.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$52,219 (2015-2019) → $63,500 (2020-2024)
+22%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateImproving
7.0% (2015-2019) → 3.0% (2020-2024)
−4 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

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, Rockwell, Arkansas improved on 1 of 12 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.

Improved1

Broadband+11 points87.3% → 98.6%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Rockwell, Arkansas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.6 min2015-2019	21.1 min2020-2024	−0.6 min	Within the margin of error	55%
Bachelor's degree or higher	25.6%2015-2019	29.9%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Broadband subscriptions	87.3%2015-2019	98.6%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	66%
Effective property tax rate	0.54%2015-2019	0.55%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	15%
High school diploma or higher	94.0%2015-2019	93.6%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	29%
Home price to income ratio	4.0×2015-2019	4.6×2020-2024	+0.5×	Within the margin of error	47%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5352015-2019	0.5022020-2024	−0.033	Within the margin of error	75%
Median household income	$52,2192015-2019	$63,5002020-2024	+22%	Within the margin of error	36%
Poverty rate	13.7%2015-2019	11.6%2020-2024	−2 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	44.6%2015-2019	44.8%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	12.4%2015-2019	9.9%2020-2024	−2.4 points	Within the margin of error	72%

“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 Rockwell, Arkansas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Rockwell, 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, Rockwell, Arkansas itself moved +2.3 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

3,986 residents (±767)

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

1,618 households (±272)

Rockwell, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Under $25k18%†294
$25k–50k20%†329
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,618 households (±272)

Rockwell, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Own66%1,070
Rent34%†548

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† 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

1,514 workers (±357)

Rockwell, Arkansas
Arkansas share

Drive alone75%1,132
Carpool13%†197
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Hot Springs, AR

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 Garland County, the county holding most of Rockwell's residents.

Garland County has 2,953 employer establishments, 296 for every 10,000 residents (1.19× the US rate of 248; 1.29× Arkansas's), with 35,325 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,572. The Census Bureau also counts 8,931 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,953; 8,931 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 296; US 248 · Arkansas 229
Paid employees: 35,325
Average annual pay: $42,572; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	330	33.1	1.59×More than typical	3,608	$69,260	528
Specialty trade contractors	244	24.5	1.58×More than typical	1,596	$48,394	830
Restaurants and other eating places	234	23.5	1.28×More than typical	4,368	$21,830	47
Lessors of real estate	143	14.3	1.16×About typical	387	$37,661	971
Offices of physicians	131	13.1	2.03×More than typical	1,815	$92,274	85
Building equipment contractors	116	11.6	1.93×More than typical	711	$47,077	135
Full-service restaurants	108	10.8	1.41×More than typical	2,345	$24,334	24
Offices of other health practitioners	105	10.5	1.73×More than typical	385	$45,642	187
Limited-service restaurants	94	9.4	1.17×About typical	1,820	$18,257	12
Services to buildings and dwellings	89	8.9	1.32×More than typical	598	$25,000	795
Religious organizations	83	8.3	1.50×More than typical	518	$25,940	—
Construction of buildings	81	8.1	1.07×About typical	240	$49,554	440

Rank places for an industry Open Garland County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 99,772 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 $82.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Rockwell, Arkansas: $20.76 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $82.8K; −95% vs FY2025
Per resident: $20.76; US $1,994
Sole-source: 77%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.8%; 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

Department of State$42.4K51%
Federal Prison Industries / Unicor$18.9K23%
Department of the Army$13.1K16%
Defense Logistics Agency$6,3217.6%
Department of Veterans Affairs$1,7102.1%
U.S. Secret Service$2990.4%

Top recipients

CGI FEDERAL INC.$42.4K51%
SIGMA SUPPLY OF NORTH AMERICA LLC$18.9K23%
HR CONTROL SOLUTIONS LLC$8,32110%
SMALL PARTS INC$6,1897.5%
B & F ENGINEERING INC$4,7985.8%

Spending by fiscal year

287.7KFY2017
858.4KFY2018
1.4MFY2019
1.4MFY2020
1.3MFY2021
1.6MFY2022
2.1MFY2023
2.5M

Top industries (NAICS)

Other support services · 5619$42.4K51%
Converted paper product manufacturing · 3222$18.9K23%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$8,32110%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$4,7985.8%
Machine shops and screw, nut, and bolt manufacturing · 3327$3,5664.3%
Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing · 3254

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 Rockwell, Arkansas, so they do not add up across cities.

Rockwell, Arkansas's figures are part of those of Garland County, AR ($44.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.2% of that total.

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

See federal money in Garland 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.

Rockwell, 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.

Garland County31100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Hot Springs, AR28

Other cities and towns in Garland 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/0560110

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends