Fort Smith, AR vs Las Vegas, NV
Moving from Fort Smith to Las Vegas? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($205,554 → $430,650 median home) and taxes.
Fort Smith vs Las Vegas at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Fort Smith, AR, you'd need about $115,209 in Las Vegas, NV (+$15,209).
Livability — Fort Smith, AR: 73 · Las Vegas, NV: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,864 sqft in Fort Smith vs 2,206 sqft in Las Vegas ($103 vs $227 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Fort Smith, AR | Las Vegas, NV | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $12,252 | $20,844 | +$8,592 |
| Groceries | $4,657 | $4,841 | +$185 |
| Transportation | $3,405 | $4,740 | +$1,335 |
| Utilities | $1,524 | $1,548 | +$24 |
| Insurance | $2,800 | $1,300 | −$1,500 |
| Taxes | $8,127 | $4,779 | −$3,348 |
| Total | $32,764 | $38,052 | +$5,288 |
Side by side
| Metric | Fort Smith, AR | Las Vegas, NV |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 85.3 | 98.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.23% | 7.66% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -12.6% | 7.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 44 | 64 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $4.85 | $5.59 |
| Median home price | $205,554 | $430,650 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 6.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.6% | -2.7% |
| Price per square foot | $103 | $227 |
| Median rent | $1,021 | $1,737 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.2% | 9.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.47% | 8.23% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.90% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.62% | 0.51% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,000 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,500 | $11,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.02% | 2.12% |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,800 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $500 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $350 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.2 | 14.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 4.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 640 | 460 |
| Avg summer high °F | 93 | 95 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |