What is the cost of living in Jonesboro?

Jonesboro has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 85.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 53.8, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,040/month.

What is the median salary in Jonesboro?

The median salary in Jonesboro is $55,412 annually (mean: $59,365). Top occupations include Registered Nurses, Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers.

How safe is Jonesboro?

The violent crime rate in the Jonesboro area is 580 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1940 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Jonesboro?

The state of AR has 1,069 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 13.6:1. Charter schools make up 9.6% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Jonesboro?

Childcare cost data is not currently available for Jonesboro.

Is Jonesboro a good place to relocate?

Jonesboro has a Life Score of 49.1/100 (D), based on 6 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Jonesboro sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Jonesboro ranks #74 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Jonesboro, AR

BEA RPP 85.9 ranks #17 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

85.9
Cost index (US=100): $1,040
2BR rent / mo: $55,412
Median salary: 58.7
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Jonesboro ranks #74 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (58.7/100), with its strongest marks in cost of living and housing.

#74
of 387 US metros · Above median: 3,088,354
metro-area population: 580
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,069
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: safety (4/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Jonesboro ranks #74 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 85.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,040/mo, median salary $55,412; LiveAbility Score 58.7/100, strongest in cost of living and housing.

Signature: BEA RPP 85.9 ranks #17 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 85.9 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,040/mo.

LiveAbility 58.7/100 puts Jonesboro in the top third (#74 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Jonesboro area is 55,350.

Jonesboro vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

59 Top 20% higher than 80% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Jonesboro housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Jonesboro MSA; housing RPP 53.8 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,040/mo.

Studio

$805

/month

1 Bedroom

$870

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,040

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,402

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,480

/month

Jonesboro wages and employment

Jonesboro posts 55,350 total employment with median salary $55,412 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$55,412

Mean Salary

$59,365

Total Employment

55,350

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Registered Nurses	$78,940
Retail Salespersons	$28,960
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$26,260
General and Operations Managers	$69,370
Cashiers	$28,090

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Jonesboro area from NCES.

Schools

1,069

Enrollment

491,340

Student:Teacher

13.6:1

Title I %

Life Score Breakdown

Jonesboro's composite Life Score is 49.1/100 (D), computed across 6 of 7 dimensions (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized).

Cost

96/100

Elite

Wages

4/100

Bottom decile

Rent

90/100

Elite

Crime

4/100

Bottom decile

Schools

20/100

Weak

Environment

81/100

Elite

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Jonesboro ranks #74 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 58.7/100 - a composite of 7 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized). Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Cost of living (96/100)

Cost of living

96
Housing

90
Schools

80
Low hazard

64
Climate

62
Job market

4
Safety

4

What this shows Jonesboro's strongest dimensions are cost of living and housing; its weakest among scored dims is safety at 4/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%; this metro uses 7 of 8 dims with renormalized weights.

Compare Jonesboro to

Cleveland Coeur d'Alene College Station-Bryan Colorado Springs Columbia Columbia

Metros near Jonesboro on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Jonesboro on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Jonesboro cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Jonesboro wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Jonesboro?

Jonesboro runs a $55,412 median salary at a 85.9 cost index, ranking #74 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Jonesboro's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Jonesboro head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Jonesboro
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.