County · Arkansas

Independence County, Arkansas

Independence County, Arkansas. Independence County had 38,785 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than Arkansas (+3.4%). It holds 14 places (10 cities, villages and boroughs and 4 census-designated) and 10 census tracts. GEOID 05063.

Independence County is the county of the Batesville, AR micropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

38,785

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 37,938 · ACS 2020-2024: 38,175

Median household income

$56,609

±$4,487 (90% margin)
Arkansas: $60,773

Median home value

$142,600

±$13,680 (90% margin)
Arkansas: $188,000

Median gross rent

$845

±$30 (90% margin)
Arkansas: $947

How many people live in Independence County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 37,938 residents in Independence County. The Census Bureau estimates 38,785 for July 1, 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than Arkansas (+3.4%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 38,175 over 764 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 +110 (38,051)
2021→2022 +206 (38,257)
2022→2023 +195 (38,452)
2023→2024 +117 (38,569)
2024→2025 +216 (38,785)

Independence County in Arkansas. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Independence County	Arkansas	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	38,175	3,049,391	+748
Households	14,638±398	1,205,987	no clear change
Average household size	2.54±0.07	2.46	no clear change
Housing units	16,786±28	1,394,673	+261

Independence County's population since 2000

From 34,233 in 2000 to 38,785 in 2025: up 13.3%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 34,233
2005 (estimate) 35,155
2010 Census 36,647
2015 (estimate) 37,055
2020 Census 37,938
2025 (estimate) 38,785

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Independence County?

Independence County holds 14 places: 10 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 4 census-designated places. The largest is Batesville with 11,860 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Independence County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Batesville	city	11,191	11,445±31	$51,856	$163,600	26.3%	100%
Southside	city	4,279	4,246±18	$65,655	$151,300	17.5%	100%
Newark	city	1,180	1,637±534	$40,417	$96,300	29.5%	100%
DeshaGEOID 0518580	CDP	715	679±304	$68,403	$117,600	17.1%	100%
Sulphur Rock	town	609	1,014±414	$96,429	not published	10.3%	100%
SaladoGEOID 0562120	CDP	472	507±436	$39,355	$221,800	1.4%	100%
Cushman	city	433	488±149	$43,500	$115,100	20.7%	100%
Pleasant PlainsGEOID 0556270	town	352	376±171	$59,531	$118,800	11.4%	100%
Oil TroughGEOID 0551410	town	226	259±119	$40,083	$83,100	40.2%	100%
MagnessGEOID 0543370	town	220	238±105	$42,500	$115,000	14.7%	100%
BethesdaGEOID 0505770	CDP	199	79±63	$77,946	not published	0.0%	100%
Cave City	city	1,922	2,090±387	$49,800	$120,700	19.7%	9%
MoorefieldGEOID 0546730	town	126	120±42	$68,750	$250,000	12.5%	100%
FloralGEOID 0524070	CDP	109	194±191	not published	$33,000	0.0%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Independence County?

The median resident of Independence County is 38.7 years old; 24.3% are under 18 and 17.6% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 82.1%, then Hispanic or Latino residents (of any race) at 8.9%. 4.0% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Independence County	Arkansas	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	38.7±0.6	38.5	no clear change
Under 18 years	24.3%±0.2 pts	23.1%	–
65 years and over	17.6%±0.2 pts	17.6%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	8.9%	9.0%	+2.6 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	82.1%±1.7 pts	67.4%	−6.6 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	1.8%±0.5 pts	14.6%	no clear change
Asian alone, not Hispanic	0.8%±0.2 pts	1.6%	no clear change
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.3%±0.4 pts	0.4%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	5.3%±1.6 pts	6.3%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.6%±0.4 pts	0.3%	–
Born outside the United States	4.0%±0.7 pts	5.4%	+1.2 pts
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	5.9%±0.8 pts	8.3%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	6.2%±1.0 pts	7.4%	–
With a disability	19.5%±1.9 pts	18.0%	–
No health insurance coverage	10.0%±1.6 pts	9.0%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	88.2%±1.8 pts	88.7%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	18.1%±2.1 pts	25.7%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	6.1%±1.2 pts	9.5%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	2.3%±1.1 pts	2.4%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Independence County earn?

Half of Independence County's 14,638 households earn less than $56,609 a year (±$4,487), against $60,773 in Arkansas. In 2015-2019 it was $54,543 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 20.4% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Independence County	Arkansas	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$56,609±$4,487	$60,773	no clear change
Mean household income	$78,952±$6,293	$84,759	–
Per capita income	$30,847±$2,428	$34,225	no clear change
People below the poverty line	20.4%±3.4 pts	16.0%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	29.7%±6.7 pts	21.1%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	13.7%±2.1 pts	10.2%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	81.4%±2.7 pts	86.7%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Independence County?

Owners occupy 69.2% of Independence County's occupied homes and renters 30.8%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $142,600 by its owner (±$13,680). The median renter pays $845 a month including utilities, and 34.1% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Independence County	Arkansas	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$142,600±$13,680	$188,000	+$20,884
Median gross rent	$845±$30	$947	+$68
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	34.1%±5.2 pts	35.9%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,114±$50	$1,345	–
Owner-occupied homes	69.2%±2.4 pts	66.4%	no clear change
Housing units	16,786±28	1,394,673	+261
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.7%±0.8 pts	1.1%	–
Rental vacancy rate	3.7%±2.9 pts	6.4%	–
Single-family detached homes	69.4%±3.5 pts	70.0%	–
Mobile homes	22.1%±3.2 pts	11.0%	–
Built 2020 or later	1.2%±0.5 pts	2.1%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	4.4%±1.2 pts	4.1%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Independence County building?

Builders took permits for 33 new housing units across Independence County in 2025 (9 single-family), 0.9 per 1,000 residents.

2019 20 units
2020 31 units
2021 9 units
2022 27 units
2023 6 units
2024 32 units
2025 33 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Independence County get to work?

80.6% of Independence County's workers drive alone and 5.8% work from home. The average trip to work takes 19.5 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 3.9%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Independence County	Arkansas	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	58.0%±2.1 pts	58.4%	–
Unemployment rate	3.9%±1.2 pts	4.9%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	80.6%±2.5 pts	78.9%	–
Carpooled	10.4%±2.1 pts	9.4%	–
Public transportation	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Walked	2.0%±1.2 pts	1.4%	–
Worked from home	5.8%±1.7 pts	8.8%	+2.5 pts
Mean travel time to work	19.5 min±1.2	22.5 min	no clear change

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Independence County's census tracts?

Independence County is divided into 10 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $45,833 (Tract 4906) to $73,667 (Tract 4907.01).

Census tracts of Independence County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 4901.0105063490101	Cushman (18%)	2,687	2,452±240	$65,603	$123,000	$604	16.4%
Tract 4901.0205063490102	Cave City (4%)	3,578	3,278±476	$65,750	$146,900	$748	19.4%
Tract 490205063490200	Batesville (77%)	2,619	2,497±454	$57,610	$123,100	$781	20.8%
Tract 490305063490300	Batesville (56%)	6,338	6,402±677	$46,544	$159,100	$916	25.4%
Tract 490405063490400	Newark (18%)	4,545	5,057±649	$51,044	$161,100	$791	20.4%
Tract 490505063490500	Batesville (64%)	3,074	3,041±534	$71,938	$228,800	$933	15.1%
Tract 490605063490600	Batesville (80%)	2,909	3,168±460	$45,833	$108,000	$886	25.1%
Tract 4907.0105063490701	Southside (30%)	3,631	3,840±479	$73,667	$149,900	$763	18.6%
Tract 4907.0205063490702	Southside (56%)	3,629	3,429±654	$51,870	$115,400	$840	15.5%
Tract 490805063490800	Oil Trough (10%)	4,928	5,011±551	$61,449	$99,600	$837	21.9%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Independence County compare with Arkansas's other counties?

Independence County's rank among Arkansas's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	19th of 75
Growth 2020-2025	27th of 75
Residents per square mile	20th of 75
Median household income	17th of 75
Median home value	32nd of 75
Median gross rent	22nd of 75
Poverty rate	23rd of 75
Bachelor's degree or higher	29th of 75
Median age	60th of 75

Every county in Arkansas

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Independence County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.