Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses in Arkansas
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$46,038
after federal, FICA and Arkansas tax
Tax takes
$10,582
18.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$53,218
Arkansas costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Arkansas — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$56,620
Kept after tax
$46,038
Worth in national money
$53,218
State rank
48
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is on the low side in Arkansas. The middle earner gets $56,620. That is 48 of 51 states, and about 12.08% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 177 among 489 occupations Arkansas publishes pay for.
- Arkansas is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $56,620 the take-home is $46,038; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $53,218 would nationally. The average lands at $55,690, below the middle of the range.
- For licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses, Arkansas sits in the lower band at $56,620, ranking 48 of 51 and trailing the national median by about 12.08%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Position 177 of 489 in Arkansas places licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- Post-tax income for licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses in Arkansas, on $56,620, is $46,038 — equivalent to $53,218 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $55,690 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $44,670 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $56,620 |
| Top tenth earn over | $65,020 |
| This salary | $56,620 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Arkansas | $46,038 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $47,674 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$4,158 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $54,583 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$5,029 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 87 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses in Arkansas earn under $56,620 and half over. The published range runs $44,670 at the tenth percentile to $65,020 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Arkansas the take-home figure of $46,038, from $56,620, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 177 of 489 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $53,218, the adjusted value of that $56,620 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Arkansas. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 177 of 489 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses in Arkansas, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $44,670 to $65,020; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for Arkansas is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $46,038 from $56,620. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 177 of 489 locally.
- This $53,218 adjusted figure, worked from $56,620, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 177 of 489 in the state. The occupation ranks 177 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $44,670 at the tenth percentile, $65,020 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Arkansas sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $53,218 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Arkansas then takes its own share, leaving $46,038.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($44,670 to $65,020) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Arkansas rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Arkansas's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $53,218 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $46,038 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Arkansas income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.