Cost Of Living in Alma, AR

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Alma	Arkansas	National
Cost of living	91	86	100
Goods & Services	102	98	100
Groceries	92	95	100
Health care	101	88	100
Housing	74	65	100
Transportation	96	90	100
Utilities	94	92	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Alma is 6% higher than the Arkansas average
The cost of living in Alma is 9% lower than the national average
Alma housing is 26% lower than the national average
Arkansas general sales tax is 27% higher than the national average
Arkansas state income tax is 23% lower than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$58,182	$4,849	$1,357	$1,746
Renters	$24,196	$2,016	$565	$726

The affordability of the housing market in Alma, AR as well as the overall cost of living can be predicted by what percent of the monthly income is spent on housing related costs. This is konwn as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The overall rule of thumb is that no more than 28% of your gross income should be spent on the overall costs related to housing and no more than 36% of gross income on all expenses and debts. Among Alma homeowners, the median income is $58,182. This indicates that a monthly maximum of $1,357 should be spent by homeowners on all housing related costs. Renters have a median income of $24,196. This indicates that renters would have a maximum of $565 for their rent related monthly costs.

Arkansas Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Arkansas	6.5%	11.625%

Arkansas Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Arkansas	2%	4.9%

Goods & Services

Item	Alma	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$21.65	$24.26	10.8%
Beauty Salon	$45.00	$45.56	1.2%
Toothpaste	$3.68	$3.70	0.5%
Shampoo	$1.08	$1.28	15.5%
Movie	$11.50	$12.13	5.2%
Bowling	$14.71	$18.00	18.3%

Groceries

Item	Alma	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.81	$5.84	0.4%
Fried Chicken	$1.39	$1.57	11.8%
Milk	$4.52	$4.67	3.2%
Potatoes	$5.22	$4.93	5.9%
Pizza	$10.10	$12.09	16.4%
Beer	$10.21	$10.41	2.0%

Health Care

Item	Alma	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$99.78	$125.68	20.6%
Doctor	$108.55	$135.78	20.1%
Dentist	$83.89	$113.29	26.0%
Ibuprofen	$10.16	$10.65	4.6%
Lipitor	$454.89	$468.60	2.9%

Housing

Item	Alma	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$145,600.00	$184,700.00	21.2%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,863.97	$2,346.69	20.6%
Apartment Rent	$608.00	$949.00	35.9%

Transportation

Item	Alma	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.01	$3.46	13.0%
Tire Balancing	$52.21	$59.92	12.9%

Utilities

Item	Alma	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$150.82	$193.99	22.3%
Phone	$203.29	$192.25	5.7%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Moffett, OK	91	78	22.3%
Branch, AR	389	80	20.2%
Mountainburg, AR	552	81	18.6%
Mulberry, AR	1,586	82	18.2%
Arkoma, OK	1,841	82	18.1%
Alma, AR	5,816	91	9.1%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Monticello, IL	5,815	97	3.3%
St. Johnsbury, VT	5,815	99	0.5%
Little Silver, NJ	5,817	197	97.0%
Elsmere, DE	5,814	104	3.5%
Massanetta Springs, VA	5,819	126	25.9%
Alma, AR	5,816	91	9.1%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

Cost of Living in Alma, AR