Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Lowell (1.4%) is lower than in 91% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Lowell is better than 88% of U.S. towns (A); for walkability it is more walkable than 25% of U.S. towns (C). About one in ten stay in Lowell for work; outside it, Rogers is the main destination (22%, 4 miles). 16% of workers work from home, next to 9% for Arkansas as a whole.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Lowell stands out on work
Stores, warehouses and trucking
65% of the jobs in Lowell are in trade, transport and utilities, against 25% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
A lot of Lowell works one town over
42% of working residents work in a town that borders Lowell: Rogers (22%), Springdale (19%) and Cave Springs (1%). Next door ↓
Lowell is where the jobs are
Lowell has 13,541 jobs, 2.6 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 20,000 people are in town, 68% more than the 12,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Most Lowell residents work close to home
72% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
Lowell has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Lowell went from 8,794 in 2013 to 13,541 in 2023, +54%. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Income, poverty and work: Lowell’s grade explained
Unemployment is its strongest input; the poverty rate ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (6.9%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lowell could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
72% of the jobs in Lowell pay over $3,333 a month
13,541 jobs are based in Lowell.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lowell, 2013 → 2023: 8,794 → 13,541. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Lowell’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many people are in Lowell by day
On a workday 4,784 residents head out to work, 483 work right here, and 13,058 people come in from elsewhere.
About 20,000 people are in Lowell on a workday afternoon, 68% more than live here.
2.6 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Lowell
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Who travels to work in Lowell, and from where
Where Lowell clocks in
22% of workers
18% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Getting to work from Lowell takes about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lowell workers work from home, vs 9% across Arkansas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,699 commuters (the 16% who work from home are left out). Across Arkansas: 87% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The commute in Lowell is mostly behind the wheel
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.0% across Arkansas.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 5,591 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 0.4% of Lowell households have no vehicle (Arkansas 5.9%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Lowell’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Lowell is 407th among 2,151 U.S. towns of 9,000 to 16,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 292 | Pea Ridge AR | 11,233 | $96K | 3.2% | 1.3% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 370 | Farmington AR | 10,658 | $90K | 3.8% | 0.7% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 405 | Canton CT | 10,304 | $118K | 5.7% | 3.1% | 11% | A |
| 406 | Rosaryville MD | 12,883 | $159K | 3.8% | 5.4% | 1% | A |
| 407 | Lowell AR | 12,184 | $96K | 6.9% | 1.4% | 9% | A |
| 408 | Harrison OH | 13,795 | $100K | 6.9% | 1.5% | 12% | A |
| 409 | Spring Lake Township MI | 15,705 | $97K | 4.9% | 2.2% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,044 | Marion AR | 13,378 | $78K | 8.6% | 4.7% | 15% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 2,151 | Roma TX | 11,543 | $25K | 37.1% | 12.4% | 22% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Lowell, the top three, the last and three more from Arkansas.
Bordering towns draw 42% of Lowell’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lowell workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lowell | – | A | C | 20 min | $95,527 |
| Rogers | 22% | B+ | C+ | 18 min | $86,728 |
| Springdale | 19% | B− | B− | 19 min | $69,787 |
| Cave Springs | 1% | A | C− | 20 min | $146,473 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Rogers. Darker towns draw more of Lowell’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Lowell: questions
What is the median household income in Lowell?
$95,527 (±$7,726) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $60,773 across Arkansas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lowell?
6.9%, against 16.0% across Arkansas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lowell?
20 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Arkansas and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lowell work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Rogers (22%, 4 mi), Springdale (19%, 4 mi), Bentonville (18%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lowell walkable?
Lowell is more walkable than 25% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 6.6 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lowell without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and <1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lowell, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lowell
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.