Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Dardanelle gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $179K for a typical one, or 3.1 years of the Russellville area’s $57K median household income. It grades C overall, ranked 45th of 123 in Arkansas. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 81% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top, and residents are less healthy than 82% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On the plus side, its public schools beat 84% of Arkansas towns on state tests and graduation. On the outdoors, just 4 of Arkansas’ 201 towns do better. Its National Register listings include Dardanelle Confederate Monument and Dardanelle Agriculture and Post Office. Among 108 Arkansas towns, just 2 have a lower property crime rate than Dardanelle.
Where Dardanelle beats most towns.
Steamboat House| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Dardanelle Primary School | K–3 | 615 |
| Dardanelle Intermediate School | 4–5 | 315 |
| Dardanelle Middle School | 6–8 | 500 |
Its founding year, 1823, comes before those of 97% of the Arkansas towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 299 in 1860, 4,517 in 2020. The archive holds 23 old photos and papers going back to 1890 and 3 maps from 1888 on.
10 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Arkansas), ordered by how far Dardanelle is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Dardanelle, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Dardanelle.
Dardanelle pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, draws workers from Russellville and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
Its A− for the outdoors ranks #4 of 123 in Arkansas.
That puts Dardanelle where Arkansas’ towns sit at 0.8% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. 1.9 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Dardanelle City Park, at 89 acres with 1.1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Dardanelle | Arkansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.7% | 0.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Dardanelle City Park | 1.1 mi | 89 |
| 2. Veteran's Riverfront Memorial Park | — | 23 |
| 3. Riverview Recreation Area | — | 18 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its A− for schools comes with a B for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $179K.
Its public schools are run by the Dardanelle School District. Three of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Dardanelle High School, with 686 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dardanelle Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–3 | Grades K–3 | 615 | B− |
| Dardanelle High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 686 | B |
| Dardanelle Intermediate SchoolTop results in townGrades 4–5 | Grades 4–5 | 315 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AR on state tests and graduation
3,058 jobs are based in Dardanelle, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 1,299 in 2013 to 3,058.
Most working residents leave Dardanelle for work: only 17% work in town. At 19 minutes, Dardanelle’s average trip to work is below both Arkansas’ towns (21 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Jobs based in Dardanelle grew to 3,058 in 2023, 1,759 more than in 2013.
| Dardanelle | Arkansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 21 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 17% | 22% | 8% |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $55,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 18% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 6,137 U.S. towns with household incomes like Dardanelle’s, it is less healthy than 58%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income. Within Arkansas it is healthier than 50% of the 123 graded towns: much of Arkansas scores lower on these measures.
18% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Dardanelle. Dardanelle beats the Arkansas average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 35% of adults get no exercise outside work in Dardanelle.
| Dardanelle | Arkansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 11% | 8.1% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 34% | 25% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 25% | 19% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 39% | 35% |
| What stands out | Dardanelle | AR |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 18.4% | 11.3% |
| Fewer adults seeing a dentist | 50.1% | 54.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Since 1998, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Dardanelle.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Dardanelle has mild winters and hot summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Dardanelle is 93°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Dardanelle home is worth about $179,000, up 2.4% in a year, 20% below the Arkansas typical home. 57% of Dardanelle households own their home.
| Dardanelle | Arkansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 57% | 60% | 73% |
| Median rent | $984 a month | $875 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Reported crimes fell from 92 to 22 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Dardanelle’s violent crime rate is 2.9 per 1,000 residents. Within Arkansas, it does better than 73% of towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
1 within 15 miles of the center of Dardanelle
About 6 of every 100 Dardanelle residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Arkansas.
7.7% of the town is conserved land, across 3 parks and preserves.
10 places in Dardanelle on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Dardanelle.
City in Arkansas, United States
Dardanelle is a city in northeast Yell County, Arkansas, United States. Its population was 4,517 at the 2020 census. Along with Danville, it serves as a county seat for Yell County. It is located near Lake Dardanelle. Dardanelle is part of the Russellville micropolitan statistical area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Dardanelle grades C overall, better than 34% of U.S. towns and #45 of 123 in Arkansas. It grades C− for health, C+ for safety and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Within Arkansas, it does better than 73% of towns.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
7 notable people were born here, including Tom Cotton and Johnny Carpenter.
