Town · Shelby County, Tennessee

Arlington, Tennessee

Arlington is a town in Shelby County, Tennessee, part of the Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro area. It has 15,205 residents. Arlington, Tennessee has a quality-of-life score of 45 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #8,633 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Tennessee it ranks #49 of 305 cities and towns. It ranks best on broadband subscriptions (high), child poverty rate (low) and median household income (high). It ranks worst on violent crime rate (high), homicide rate (high) and property crime rate (high).

45Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #8,633 of 15,651 cities and towns
Tennessee: #49 of 305 in TN
Population: 15,205 (2020-2024)
Land area: 24 mi²
Density: 640.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 4701740

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety0#15,594/15,637
Economy93#1,127/15,631
Housing90#1,462/14,977
Health37#9,872/15,609
Healthcare60#6,254/15,650
Environment5#14,672/15,453
Education47#8,218/15,649
Infrastructure84#2,438/15,650
Community16#13,199/15,651
Leisure & amenities37#9,845/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Arlington, Tennessee ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Shelby 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

Broadband subscriptions · high98.6%
97/100Tennessee 89.2%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Child poverty rate · low3.8%
93/100Tennessee 18.4%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Median household income · high$135,105
92/100Tennessee $72,007United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Rent as share of income · low22.4%
91/100Tennessee 29.5%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Distance to an airport · low10 mi
88/100Tennessee 31 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauShelby County value
Bachelor's degree or higher · high51.2%
86/100Tennessee 31.1%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003

Weaknesses

Violent crime rate · high1,326 /100k
0/100Tennessee 492 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationShelby County value
Homicide rate · high20.9 /100k
1/100Tennessee 7.1 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataShelby County value
Property crime rate · high3,784 /100k
1/100Tennessee 1,637 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationShelby County value
Firearm deaths · high28.8 /100k
3/100Tennessee 18.9 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataShelby County value
Injury deaths · high147 /100k
4/100Tennessee 122 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteShelby County value
Premature death · high14,597 /100k
5/100Tennessee 11,427 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteShelby County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
11,697 (2015-2019) → 15,205 (2020-2024)
+30%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
43.2% (2015-2019) → 30.1% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.3× (2015-2019) → 3.1× (2020-2024)
+34%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Median household incomeImproving
$102,114 (2015-2019) → $135,105 (2020-2024)
+32%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
45.3% (2015-2019) → 51.2% (2020-2024)
+5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
28.3% (2015-2019) → 22.4% (2020-2024)
−5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

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, Arlington, Tennessee improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 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.

Improved4

Property tax−0.6 points1.33% → 0.70%
Rent / income−5.9 points28.3% → 22.4%
Household income+32%$102,114 → $135,105
Broadband+2.3 points96.3% → 98.6%

Declined2

Inequality+0.0610.311 → 0.371
Price / income+0.8×2.3× → 3.1×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Arlington, Tennessee between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	30.6 min2015-2019	27.3 min2020-2024	−3.4 min	Within the margin of error	82%
Bachelor's degree or higher	45.3%2015-2019	51.2%2020-2024	+5.9 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Broadband subscriptions	96.3%2015-2019	98.6%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Improved	16%
Effective property tax rate	1.33%2015-2019	0.70%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Improved	95%
High school diploma or higher	95.8%2015-2019	96.6%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	44%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	3.1×2020-2024	+0.8×	Declined	31%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3112015-2019	0.3712020-2024	+0.061	Declined	13%
Median household income	$102,1142015-2019	$135,1052020-2024	+32%	Improved	60%
Poverty rate	3.0%2015-2019	4.9%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Within the margin of error	27%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	28.3%2015-2019	22.4%2020-2024	−5.9 points	Improved	86%
Rent-burdened households	43.2%2015-2019	30.1%2020-2024	−13 points	Within the margin of error	87%
Unemployment rate	1.8%2015-2019	3.4%2020-2024	+1.5 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	2.2%2015-2019	3.6%2020-2024	+1.4 points	Within the margin of error	30%

“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 Arlington, Tennessee five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Arlington, Tennessee 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, Arlington, Tennessee itself moved +7.7 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

15,205 residents (±36)

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

4,837 households (±279)

Arlington, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $25k5.8%†280
$25k–50k4.9%†238
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

4,837 households (±279)

Arlington, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Own85%4,098
Rent15%739

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

7,803 workers (±423)

Arlington, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Drive alone78%6,105
Carpool5.7%†442
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 Memphis, TN-MS-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 Shelby County, the county holding most of Arlington's residents.

Shelby County has 19,359 employer establishments, 211 for every 10,000 residents (0.85× the US rate of 248; 1.01× Tennessee's), with 446,048 paid employees at an average annual pay of $64,548. The Census Bureau also counts 102,747 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 19,359; 102,747 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 211; US 248 · Tennessee 210
Paid employees: 446,048
Average annual pay: $64,548; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	1,617	17.7	0.85×About typical	27,394	$75,803	4,710
Restaurants and other eating places	1,600	17.5	0.95×About typical	33,536	$22,540	564
Lessors of real estate	792	8.7	0.70×Fewer than typical	5,233	$69,473	6,356
Limited-service restaurants	790	8.6	1.08×About typical	16,125	$19,867	191
Specialty trade contractors	768	8.4	0.54×Fewer than typical	13,240	$70,668	4,779
Full-service restaurants	625	6.8	0.89×About typical	14,868	$26,093	217
Offices of physicians	575	6.3	0.97×About typical	11,795	$110,957	923
Religious organizations	568	6.2	1.12×About typical	7,817	$27,173	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	483	5.3	0.78×Fewer than typical	7,850	$44,765	9,701
Gasoline stations	436	4.8	1.47×More than typical	1,962	$26,115	45
Truck transportation	426	4.7	0.92×About typical	12,818	$62,388	2,584
Clothing and accessories stores	408	4.5	1.23×About typical	4,886	$22,991	1,520

Rank places for an industry Open Shelby County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 915,501 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 $8,723 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Arlington, Tennessee: $0.57 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $8,723; −51% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.57; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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 the Navy$8,723100%

Top recipients

CHAPLAINCARE LLC$8,723100%

Spending by fiscal year

115KFY2017
69.6KFY2018
28.9KFY2019
18.2KFY2020
-43.6KFY2021
24.8KFY2022
8.8KFY2023
46.5KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair and maintenance · 8113$8,723100%

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 Arlington, Tennessee, so they do not add up across cities.

Arlington, Tennessee's figures are part of those of Shelby County, TN ($551.3M 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: Arlington is mostly in Shelby County.

See federal money in Shelby 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.

Arlington, Tennessee is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Shelby County24100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Memphis, TN-MS-AR15

Other cities and towns in Shelby 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/4701740

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends