How much does a Mechanical Engineer make in Arkansas?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $78,570 for Mechanical Engineers in Arkansas as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $65,200 and the 75th-percentile is $100,860.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Mechanical Engineer salary in Arkansas?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 86.8 for Arkansas), the real-wage equivalent is $90,508 — what the $78,570 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $75,107 to $116,185.

How are Arkansas Mechanical Engineer salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

How many Mechanical Engineers does Arkansas employ?

BLS OES counts 1,150 Mechanical Engineers employed in Arkansas in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Is Arkansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Mechanical Engineers?

Yes — the BEA RPP of 86.8 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $78,570 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $90,508. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for Mechanical Engineers comparing offers across regions.

What are the limits of these Mechanical Engineer salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

Defense / aerospace vs auto vs HVAC mechanical engineer pay in Arkansas?

BLS does not segment by industry. In {state}, defense and aerospace primes typically lead on base pay with strong total comp once retention/clearance bonuses layer in (often P75-P90 of the BLS band). Automotive and consumer products sit mid-band. HVAC / building-systems mechanical engineering pays below the BLS median for the first 5 years, then catches up via PE-track roles and design-build firm equity.

Arkansas Mechanical Engineer Salary: BLS $79K Median, Real $91K (2026)

TL;DR

Median Mechanical Engineer salary in Arkansas: $78,570 nominal, $90,508 real (BEA RPP basis).
Nominal: #51/51 · Real: #50/51 — ranking shifts by 1 positions after RPP.
Cost of living below the national index lifts real wage by $11,938 over the nominal — a take-home arbitrage that nominal-ranking tables miss.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $53,970 · P25 $65,200 · P75 $100,860 · P90 $122,250.

Wage breakdown — Arkansas

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$53,970	$62,170
P25 (lower quartile)	$65,200	$75,107
P50 (median)	$78,570	$90,508
P75 (upper quartile)	$100,860	$116,185
P90 (top tier)	$122,250	$140,825
Mean	$84,370	$97,189
Employment	1,150 Mechanical Engineers in Arkansas

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Arkansas index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	86.8
Goods	93.1
Services	81.9
Rents	56.7

Arkansas sits below the national baseline (RPP 86.8), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 56.7.

After-tax take-home — Arkansas (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Mechanical Engineer)	$78,570	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$8,532	10.9% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$2,565	0–3.9% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,011	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$61,462	78.2% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$70,801	÷ (86.8 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Arkansas state-tax burden means for Mechanical Engineer take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 3.3% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $61,462 (78.2% of gross). After the 86.8 RPP, real take-home is $70,801.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $102,320 for Mechanical Engineers with mean pay of $110,080 and total employment of 286,760. Arkansas sits at #51 on nominal pay and #50 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Arkansas climbs 1 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Mechanical Engineer make in Arkansas?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $78,570 for Mechanical Engineers in Arkansas as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $65,200 and the 75th-percentile is $100,860.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Mechanical Engineer salary in Arkansas?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 86.8 for Arkansas), the real-wage equivalent is $90,508 — what the $78,570 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $75,107 to $116,185.
How are Arkansas Mechanical Engineer salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
How many Mechanical Engineers does Arkansas employ?: BLS OES counts 1,150 Mechanical Engineers employed in Arkansas in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Is Arkansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Mechanical Engineers?: Yes — the BEA RPP of 86.8 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $78,570 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $90,508. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for Mechanical Engineers comparing offers across regions.
What are the limits of these Mechanical Engineer salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
Defense / aerospace vs auto vs HVAC mechanical engineer pay in Arkansas?: BLS does not segment by industry. In {state}, defense and aerospace primes typically lead on base pay with strong total comp once retention/clearance bonuses layer in (often P75-P90 of the BLS band). Automotive and consumer products sit mid-band. HVAC / building-systems mechanical engineering pays below the BLS median for the first 5 years, then catches up via PE-track roles and design-build firm equity.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 17-2141, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Arkansas Mechanical Engineer pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.