A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Malvern$830/mo

Typical home $146K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.52% · or rent about $764/mo · Housing →

Harrison$1,360/mo

Typical home $239K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.52% · or rent about $753/mo · Housing →

The difference: $530 a month, about $6,400 a year, between Harrison and Malvern.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Harrison places higher on 16 of 23 AR lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Arkansas ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety

DMalvernSafer than 9% of U.S. towns CHarrisonSafer than 30% of U.S. towns

Schools

C−MalvernBetter than 23% of districts in the state A+HarrisonBetter than 95% of districts in the state

Health

DMalvernHealthier than 8% of U.S. towns C−HarrisonHealthier than 15% of U.S. towns

7Malvern

16Harrison

Lists won, of 23 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Best schoolsSchools · 113 towns #99#7 Rent easiest to affordCost of living · 38 towns #1#31 Highest graduation rateSchools · 115 towns #79#2 Most new homesHousing · 118 towns #99#31 Lowest depressionHealth · 127 towns #8#72 Most trailsOutdoors · 89 towns #62#21 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 127 towns #81#23 Shortest commuteGetting around · 127 towns #64#13

Left end = #1 in Arkansas. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Malvern’s rankings →

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

MalvernHarrison

Snow a year1″10″

January low29°F 28°F

July high92°F 89°F

Growing season (days)220d 231d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)58th 57th

Outdoors & history

MalvernHarrison

Trails2 mi 7 mi

Conserved land0.7%1.3%

Settled—1869

National Register places14 9

Archive photos—30

Famous people born here—12

Community

MalvernHarrison

Library hours a week43 hrs 49 hrs

Colleges in town1 1

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

130 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

MalvernAR HarrisonAR

Malvern ↔ Harrison130 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Arkansas average

MalvernHarrison

People

Population 10,953Lowest 13,350Highest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +5.3%Highest AR: +3.3% +1%Lowest AR: +3.3%

Median age 39.4±1.9Lowest about the AR average 40.9±2.8Highest 6% above AR

Harrison and Malvern are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 20%±3.4Lowest AR: 23.1% 20.3%±2.8Highest AR: 23.1%

Harrison and Malvern are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 18.6%±3.1Lowest AR: 17.6% 23.4%±2.8Highest AR: 17.6%

Harrison and Malvern are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 12.9%Lowest AR: 25.7% 15.4%Highest AR: 25.7%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 2.4%±1.4Lowest AR: 5.1% 3.5%±1.2Highest AR: 5.1%

Harrison and Malvern are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $46,250±$14kHighest 24% below AR $44,056±$7kLowest 28% below AR

Malvern and Harrison are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $104,500±$17kLowest 44% below AR $169,600±$11kHighest 10% below AR

Rentmedian gross, monthly $764±$43Highest 19% below AR $753±$57Lowest 20% below AR

Malvern and Harrison are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $541Lowest 48% below AR $883Highest 15% below AR

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 26.6%±10.2Lowest AR: 44.8% 51.2%±10.8Highest AR: 44.8%

Below poverty line 20.2%Highest AR: 16% 14.9%Lowest AR: 16%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 50.2%Lowest AR: 66.4% 54.8%Highest AR: 66.4%

Typical home builtmedian year 1969Lowest 18 yrs older than AR 1981Highest 6 yrs older than AR

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 22 minHighest 4% below AR 16 minLowest 29% below AR

Work from home 4.2%±3Lowest AR: 8.8% 6.3%±2.8Highest AR: 8.8%

Harrison and Malvern are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 23.4%Lowest 50.1%Highest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 18.8 miHighest 3.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.09Lowest 2.00Highest

Top workplaceoutside town Little Rock (13%)Little Rock (3%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in HarrisonFew work in Malvern

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0.7%Lowest 1.3%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 2.3 miLowest 7.1 miHighest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.2 miLowest 0.6 miHighest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 3 3

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 63.4Lowest 79.0Highest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #99 of 113 in AR #7 of 113 in AR

School district ASU THREE RIVERS CAREER CENTER · MALVERN SCHOOL DISTRICTNORTH ARKANSAS COLLEGE SECONDARY CENTER · HARRISON SCHOOL DISTRICT

High school in town Malvern High SchoolHarrison High School

Students per teacherat that high school 8.6Highest 7.1Lowest

Arkansas average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Malvern neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Malvern’s Town Square.

Harrison neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Harrison’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Malvern and Harrison

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Bordering Malvern

+ Compare

Rockport800 people · $140K homes

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Perla141 people · $88K homes

Towns like Malvern

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Blytheville12,790 people · $119K homes

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Trumann7,410 people · $112K homes

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Stuttgart7,903 people · $153K homes

+ Compare

Newport8,024 people · $163K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Malvern vs Harrison

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they part ways

A typical home costs $530 more a month in Harrison

Harrison places higher on 16 of 23 AR lists

What daily life feels like in each

130 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Malvern and Harrison

Bordering Malvern

Towns like Malvern

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