Population
Fort Smith
89,496
Joplin
52,218
Median Income
Fort Smith
$52,692
Joplin
$51,154
Home Value
Fort Smith
$168,100
Joplin
$159,700
Rent
Fort Smith
$852
Joplin
$889
Crime Rate
Fort Smith
8.44
Joplin
5.60
Cost of Living
Fort Smith
85.9
Joplin
86.0
Avg Temp
Fort Smith
N/A
Joplin
N/A
Unemployment
Fort Smith
6.7%
Joplin
5.7%
How Similar Are Fort Smith & Joplin?
Joplin is Fort Smith's #18 most similar city
5 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Fort Smith
89,496
Joplin
52,218
Fort Smith has a 42% larger population than Joplin.
Violent Crime
Fort Smith
8.44
Joplin
5.60
Fort Smith has a 34% higher violent crime than Joplin.
Property Crime
Fort Smith
36.84
Joplin
41.21
Joplin has a 11% higher property crime than Fort Smith.
Political Leaning
Fort Smith
67.6%
Joplin
72.7%
Both cities lean Republican with similar vote shares — 7% difference.
Unemployment
Fort Smith
6.7%
Joplin
5.7%
Fort Smith has a 14% higher unemployment than Joplin.
Median Income
Fort Smith
$52,692
Joplin
$51,154
Both cities have similar median income — just a 3% difference.
Home Values
Fort Smith
$168,100
Joplin
$159,700
Both cities have similar home values — just a 5% difference.
Education
Fort Smith
16.9%
Joplin
17.8%
Both cities have similar education — just a 5% difference.
Demographics
Fort Smith
61.2%
Joplin
83.8%
Joplin has a 27% higher demographics than Fort Smith.
Cost of Living
Fort Smith
85.9
Joplin
86.0
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 0% difference.
5 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Fort Smith and Joplin share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Fort Smith
0
Joplin
Cost of Living & Affordability — Fort Smith leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDFort Smith has a fair market rent (1br) of $714 vs $765 in Joplin (7% lower). Fort Smith scores 75.5 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 78.2 in Joplin. Joplin scores 89.1 on the food index (100 = national avg) vs 90.3 in Fort Smith.
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market — Fort Smith leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSFort Smith has a vacancy rate of 9.1% compared to 11.3% in Joplin. Joplin has a single-family homes of 74.2% compared to 68.8% in Fort Smith. Fort Smith has a median home value of $168,100 vs $159,700 in Joplin (5% higher).
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Joplin leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSFort Smith: 43,801 vs Joplin: 26,297 for labor force. Joplin has a unemployment rate of 5.7% compared to 6.7% in Fort Smith. Joplin has a work from home of 8.5% compared to 7.4% in Fort Smith.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety
Source: FBI UCRFort Smith has a violent crime clearance of 73.3% compared to 23.7% in Joplin. Joplin has a assault rate (per 1k) of 4.18 compared to 6.87 in Fort Smith. Joplin has a violent crime rate (per 1k) of 5.60 compared to 8.44 in Fort Smith.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education — Joplin leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauJoplin has a high school diploma or higher of 39.4% compared to 36.1% in Fort Smith. Joplin has a bachelor's degree or higher of 17.8% compared to 16.9% in Fort Smith.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSFort Smith has a population of 89,496, about 1.7x the size of Joplin (52,218).
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Fort Smith
Joplin
Healthcare — Fort Smith leads
Source: CMS Hospital CompareFort Smith: 2.5 vs Joplin: 1.5 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Joplin leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSJoplin has a bicycle of 0.1% compared to 0.1% in Fort Smith. Joplin has a work from home of 8.5% compared to 7.4% in Fort Smith. Joplin has a public transit of 0.2% compared to 0.2% in Fort Smith.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Fort Smith, AR
Compare Fort Smith against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.