Fastest Growing Counties in Arkansas (2026)

County
Rank
Change (2020) ↓
2026 Pop.
2020 Pop.
Benton County119.72%343,107286,597
Madison County213.31%18,75816,555
Washington County311.47%275,056246,756
Faulkner County49.66%135,791123,830
Saline County58.86%134,807123,830
Izard County66.67%14,51113,604
White County75.45%81,04276,854
Craighead County85.3%117,536111,624
Grant County94.99%18,91518,016
Crawford County104.81%63,05860,164
Sharp County114.79%18,14217,313
Marion County124.41%17,61116,867
Greene County134.25%47,80245,855
Carroll County144.22%29,43728,245
Franklin County154.19%17,84817,131
Cleburne County164.01%25,70324,712
Lonoke County173.88%76,93874,065
Boone County183.58%38,72537,386
Perry County193.51%10,3479,996
Baxter County203.39%43,10541,692
Conway County213.21%21,39820,733
Fulton County223.14%12,43012,052
Logan County232.97%21,73521,108
Pope County242.95%65,28663,414
Van Buren County252.82%16,24915,803
Independence County262.79%39,00137,941
Stone County272.63%12,67512,350
Sebastian County282.47%130,959127,807
Scott County292.4%10,0649,828
Johnson County301.87%26,20325,721
Polk County311.83%19,53719,186
Pulaski County321.65%405,828399,252
Hot Spring County331.58%33,60833,086
Montgomery County341.43%8,6038,482
Randolph County351.16%18,80818,593
Lawrence County360.77%16,34616,221
Jackson County370.61%16,84416,742
Searcy County380.09%7,8527,845
Miller County39-0.54%42,35442,586
Sevier County40-0.69%15,66915,778
Garland County41-0.78%99,480100,259
Drew County42-1.16%17,12017,321
Little River County43-1.26%11,82711,978
Poinsett County44-1.33%22,64822,953
Lincoln County45-1.76%12,66612,893
Yell County46-2.02%19,80920,218
Clark County47-2.24%20,92421,404
Newton County48-2.54%7,0107,193
Pike County49-2.81%9,87310,158
Calhoun County50-3.19%4,5874,738
Clay County51-3.5%14,02614,535
Columbia County52-4.28%21,77422,747
Cross County53-4.36%16,06816,800
Prairie County54-4.41%7,8838,247
Ouachita County55-4.48%21,60622,620
Howard County56-5.05%12,11612,760
Crittenden County57-5.09%45,63148,076
Nevada County58-5.14%7,8588,284
Hempstead County59-5.44%18,90619,993
Union County60-5.68%36,73138,942
St. Francis County61-5.9%21,66123,019
Cleveland County62-6.33%7,0737,551
Jefferson County63-6.67%62,36966,825
Ashley County64-6.97%17,63818,959
Mississippi County65-7.53%37,48240,535
Lee County66-7.71%7,9208,582
Bradley County67-8.02%9,65910,501
Dallas County68-8.2%5,9136,441
Arkansas County69-8.92%15,58017,106
Lafayette County70-9.12%5,7206,294
Woodruff County71-9.56%5,6276,222
Monroe County72-9.6%6,1196,769
Chicot County73-12.43%8,89210,154
Desha County74-14.63%9,66311,319
Phillips County75-14.82%13,95516,383

Arkansas Counties Growth Overview

Arkansas's counties show varied growth patterns from 2020 to 2026. Benton County leads with 3.04% annualized growth, followed by Madison County (2.1%) and Washington County (1.83%). The largest counties are Pulaski County (405,828), Benton County (343,107), and Washington County (275,056). Of the 75 counties in Arkansas, 38 are growing while 37 have experienced population decline. Overall, counties averaged -0.11% annualized growth, with total population growing by 0.65% annually.

Change (2020)

-0.05

-0.025

0

0.025

0.05

0.075