Physician Assistants in Arkansas
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$88,222
after federal, FICA and Arkansas tax
Tax takes
$30,208
25.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$101,982
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
$118,430
Kept after tax
$88,222
Worth in national money
$101,982
State rank
47
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Arkansas is among the lower-paying states for physician assistants. The middle earner takes $118,430, ranking 47 of 51 states — about 12.84% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in Arkansas. It ranks 16 out of 489 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Arkansas is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $118,430 the take-home is $88,222; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $101,982 would nationally. The average sits at $118,430, the same as the middle.
- Arkansas ranks 47 of 51 for physician assistants, with a median of $118,430 — about 12.84% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Within Arkansas, physician assistants ranks 16 of 489 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- Post-tax income for physician assistants in Arkansas, on $118,430, is $88,222 — equivalent to $101,982 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. Mean and median are identical at $118,430, unusual in wage data and worth noting.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Physician Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $88,160 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $118,430 |
| Top tenth earn over | $159,080 |
| This salary | $118,430 |
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 | $88,222 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $92,146 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$7,157 |
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 | $112,853 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$10,077 |
| 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 physician assistants in Arkansas earn under $118,430 and half over. The published range runs $88,160 at the tenth percentile to $159,080 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $88,222 take-home in Arkansas comes from $118,430. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 16 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $101,982 uses one figure for the whole of Arkansas. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 16.
- Figures are distribution medians for physician assistants in Arkansas, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $88,160 to $159,080; 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.
- Retained pay of $88,222, from $118,430, assumes a single Arkansas filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 16 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 47 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $101,982, worked from $118,430, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Arkansas address, on work sitting at 16 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $88,160 at the bottom tenth to $159,080 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
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 $101,982 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Arkansas's own levy, $88,222 remains.
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 ($88,160 to $159,080) 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 $101,982 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 $88,222 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.