Annual revisions of the employment data for metropolitan areas is nearly complete. However, the Smoothed Seasonally Adjusted measures of employment and unemployment have yet to be updated.
Looking at the available data for March 2026, the not-seasonally adjusted unemployment data show a range of unemployment rates across the state’s metro areas. Northwest Arkansas continues to show the lowest unemployment rate in the state, while Hot Springs presently has the highest rate. Compared to March 2025, unemployment rates have risen in all metro areas except Memphis. (For reference, the not-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the state of Arkansas in March 2026 was 4.2%, up from 3.8% in March 2025.)
Payroll Employment
From February to March, nonfarm payroll employment increased in Northwest Arkansas, Jonesboro, Memphis, and Texarkana. Employment was down slightly in Little Rock, and unchanged in Fort Smith and Hot Springs. Over the past 12 months, employment has increased by 2.2% in Northwest Arkansas and by 1.1% in Central Arkansas. Other areas have shown smaller increases. Fort Smith is down by 0.7% and Hot Springs is 0.2% lower than in March 2025.
Over the past six years, employment gains in Northwest, Central Arkansas, and Jonesboro have been significant. Hot Springs is up by 2.0% over the 6 year period, while Memphis and Texarkana have experienced job losses over that time span.
