State comparison
Arkansas vs Mississippi: which state is better to live in?
Mississippi costs a median household about $650 a year less in state and local taxes than Arkansas, mostly because its combined sales tax is 7.07% against 9.46%.
Arkansas
Moderate tax burden · COL index 85
Wins 6 categories
Mississippi
Moderate tax burden · COL index 82
Wins 8 categories
Taxes: Arkansas vs Mississippi
Arkansas has a graduated income tax topping out at 3.9%, which works out to 3.6% on a median income of $74,580, or $2,680 a year. Mississippi has a flat 4.7% income tax, which works out to 3.5% on a median income of $74,580, or $2,583 a year. Mississippi wins on income tax at 2026 rates.
Property tax is 0.60% of home value a year in Arkansas and 0.64% in Mississippi (Tax Foundation, 2023); on each state's median home that is $1,170 against $1,152, so Arkansas has the lower rate.
Combined state and local sales tax averages 9.46% in Arkansas and 7.07% in Mississippi; Mississippi is lower.
Add it up for a household earning $74,580 (the 2022 national median) and owning the median home: $5,966 a year in Arkansas, $5,317 in Mississippi. Mississippi is cheaper on total state and local tax.
Housing and cost of living
Arkansas's cost of living index is 85 and Mississippi's is 82, where 100 is the national average; Mississippi is about 4% cheaper day to day.
The median home costs $195K in Arkansas and $180K in Mississippi (Zillow, 2024), a $15K gap in Mississippi's favor. A two-bedroom rents for about $970 a month in Arkansas and $950 in Mississippi.
Home insurance averages $2,600 a year in Arkansas and $2,500 in Mississippi, so Mississippi is cheaper to insure.
Safety
Violent crime runs 619 incidents per 100,000 residents in Arkansas and 283 in Mississippi (FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2023); Mississippi is the safer state by that measure, with a rate 119% lower. Property crime is 2,469 per 100,000 in Arkansas against 2,080 in Mississippi, again favoring Mississippi.
Health
Life expectancy is 73.8 years in Arkansas and 71.9 in Mississippi (County Health Rankings, 2024), a 1.9-year edge for Arkansas. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks Arkansas's health system 44th of 50 and Mississippi's 47th, so Arkansas scores better on care.
9.4% of Arkansas residents have no health insurance against 16.8% in Mississippi, which favors Arkansas. Arkansas expanded Medicaid and Mississippi did not.
Schools
Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks Arkansas's K-12 schools 42nd in the country and Mississippi's 50th, 8 places apart in Arkansas's favor. Both states run school-choice voucher programs.
Laws and politics
In the 2024 presidential election Arkansas went to Trump by 28 points and Mississippi went to Trump by 17 points.
Arkansas has permitless carry and a Giffords gun-law grade of F; Mississippi has permitless carry and a grade of F.
Abortion is banned with narrow exceptions in both states, and marijuana is medical only in both as of 2026. The minimum wage is $11.00 an hour in Arkansas and $7.25 in Mississippi.
Climate and risk
Natural disaster risk is high in Arkansas (tornado, flood) and very high in Mississippi (hurricane, tornado, flood), so Arkansas is the lower-risk state. Annual average air quality index is 35 in Arkansas and 32 in Mississippi (under 50 is good), favoring Mississippi.
Tax figures use a household earning the national median income and owning each state's median home, at tax year 2026 rates, last checked against state sources on 2026-09-14. The table below has every number.
Taxes
Housing & Cost of Living
Crime & Safety
Healthcare
Education
Childcare
Utilities & Daily Costs
Social Policy
Category wins
6
Arkansas
8
Mississippi
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Score For My Profile →Questions people ask
Is Arkansas or Mississippi better to live in?
Mississippi wins more of the measures that decide a move. Mississippi on taxes ($5,317 a year for a median household against $5,966); Mississippi on everyday costs (index 82 against 85); Mississippi on safety (283 violent crimes per 100,000 against 619); Arkansas on schools (ranked 42nd against 50th).
Which is cheaper, Arkansas or Mississippi?
Mississippi is cheaper day to day: cost of living index 82 against 85. The median home is $195K in Arkansas and $180K in Mississippi (2024). On state and local taxes Mississippi saves a median household about $650 a year.
Does Arkansas or Mississippi have lower taxes?
Mississippi. A household earning $74,580 pays about $5,966 a year in Arkansas ($2,680 income tax, $1,170 property tax on the median home and $2,117 in sales tax) and $5,317 in Mississippi ($2,583 income tax, $1,152 property tax on the median home and $1,582 in sales tax), at 2026 rates.
Which is safer, Arkansas or Mississippi?
Mississippi, on the FBI's 2023 figures. Violent crime is 619 per 100,000 residents in Arkansas and 283 in Mississippi; property crime is 2,469 against 2,080.
Which has better schools, Arkansas or Mississippi?
Arkansas. Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks Arkansas 42nd of 50 for K-12 and Mississippi 50th.
Is Arkansas or Mississippi better for retirees?
Mississippi is friendlier to retirees on paper. Arkansas does not tax Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has no estate or inheritance tax; Mississippi does not tax Social Security, exempts pensions and has no estate or inheritance tax. Property tax on a median home is $1,170 a year in Arkansas and $1,152 in Mississippi.