How much does an MA make in Arkansas?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $37,150 for MAs in Arkansas as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $34,910 and the 75th-percentile is $40,140.

Why is the BEA RPP for Arkansas different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Arkansas's overall index of 86.8 reflects rents 56.7, services 81.9, and goods 93.1.

Where does Arkansas rank for MA pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Arkansas ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

How wide is the wage spread in Arkansas?

P10 to P90 spans $30,620 to $45,750. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Is Arkansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for MAs?

Yes — the BEA RPP of 86.8 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $37,150 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $42,795. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for MAs comparing offers across regions.

What are the limits of these MA 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.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Arkansas Medical Assistant Salary: BLS $37K Median, Real $43K (2026)

TL;DR

Median MA salary in Arkansas: $37,150 nominal, $42,795 real (BEA RPP basis).
Bottom quartile $34,910, top quartile $40,140. The P90 ($45,750) is roughly 1.5× the P10 ($30,620).
Below-100 RPP flips this state above its nominal rank in real-wage terms; the gap is about $5,645.
MA ranking: #47 on the BLS table, #36 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Arkansas

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$30,620	$35,272
P25 (lower quartile)	$34,910	$40,214
P50 (median)	$37,150	$42,795
P75 (upper quartile)	$40,140	$46,239
P90 (top tier)	$45,750	$52,701
Mean	$38,060	$43,843
Employment	4,990 MAs 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 (MA)	$37,150	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$2,320	6.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$949	0–3.9% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$2,842	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$31,039	83.5% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$35,755	÷ (86.8 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Arkansas state-tax burden means for MA take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 2.6% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $31,039 (83.5% of gross). After the 86.8 RPP, real take-home is $35,755.

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 $44,200 for MAs with mean pay of $44,720 and total employment of 793,460. Arkansas sits at #47 on nominal pay and #36 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Arkansas climbs 11 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an MA make in Arkansas?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $37,150 for MAs in Arkansas as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $34,910 and the 75th-percentile is $40,140.
Why is the BEA RPP for Arkansas different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Arkansas's overall index of 86.8 reflects rents 56.7, services 81.9, and goods 93.1.
Where does Arkansas rank for MA pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Arkansas ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
How wide is the wage spread in Arkansas?: P10 to P90 spans $30,620 to $45,750. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Is Arkansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for MAs?: Yes — the BEA RPP of 86.8 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $37,150 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $42,795. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for MAs comparing offers across regions.
What are the limits of these MA 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.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 31-9092, 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 2026-05-07.

Cross-comparison: see how Arkansas MA 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.