Best-Value Colleges in Arkansas
9 Arkansas 4-year colleges ranked by return on investment - 10-year graduate earnings per dollar of net price - among schools that beat the state median on earnings and graduation rate.
Quick answer
The best-value college in Arkansas is University of Arkansas, Fayetteville - a net price of $17,571 against $58,191 in median 10-year earnings, an ROI of 3.3×, with a 70% graduation rate. Every school here turns a modest cost into outsized, above-median earnings.
| # | School | Net price /yr | 10-yr earnings | ROI (earn ÷ price) | Grad rate | In-state tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR | $17,571 | $58,191 | 3.3× | 70% | $10,496 |
| 2 |  Lyon College Batesville, AR | $14,400 | $44,232 | 3.1× | 56% | $31,000 |
| 3 |  University of Central Arkansas Conway, AR | $16,423 | $45,938 | 2.8× | 53% | $10,940 |
| 4 |  Arkansas State University Jonesboro, AR | $15,441 | $42,617 | 2.8× | 55% | $8,354 |
| 5 |  Harding University Searcy, AR | $19,786 | $52,876 | 2.7× | 71% | $27,282 |
| 6 |  Hendrix College Conway, AR | $23,177 | $60,376 | 2.6× | 69% | $39,750 |
| 7 |  University of the Ozarks Clarksville, AR | $17,192 | $44,384 | 2.6× | 52% | $26,700 |
| 8 |  John Brown University Siloam Springs, AR | $22,476 | $53,907 | 2.4× | 67% | $32,710 |
| 9 |  Ouachita Baptist University Arkadelphia, AR | $25,343 | $51,673 | 2.0× | 70% | $35,740 |
How we ranked this
From every Arkansas four-year college that publishes net price, 10-year median earnings, and graduation rate, we keep only those that beat the state median on earnings and that graduate at least 45% of students (or the state median grad rate, whichever is higher). We then rank by ROI = 10-year median earnings ÷ average annual net price - the dollars of graduate earnings each dollar of net price buys - highest first. This rewards genuine return on investment rather than the cheapest sticker price, and the 4-year + outcome guards keep out the low-completion and 2-year outliers a pure price sort surfaces. Colleges missing any of the three figures are excluded, never estimated. Minimum 5 qualifying schools required to publish a page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best-value college in Arkansas?+
University of Arkansas in Fayetteville has the highest return on investment among Arkansas 4-year colleges that beat the state median on outcomes: a net price of $17,571 against $58,191 in 10-year median earnings - an ROI of 3.3× (dollars earned per dollar of annual net price) - with a 70% graduation rate.
What does "net price" mean?+
Net price is the average annual cost students actually pay after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the full cost of attendance - a far better affordability measure than sticker tuition. We use the College Scorecard average net price.
How is "best value" defined here?+
Value means return on investment, not cheapness. Among Arkansas four-year colleges that beat the state median on BOTH 10-year graduate earnings and graduation rate (and graduate at least 45% of students), we rank by the ROI ratio = 10-year median earnings ÷ average annual net price. The school that turns each tuition dollar into the most graduate earnings ranks first.
Is the cheapest college always the best value?+
No. A rock-bottom price that leads to low earnings is worse value than a moderate price that leads to high earnings. That is exactly why we rank by the earnings-to-net-price ratio rather than by lowest price, and require above-median earnings and graduation rates first. Colleges missing net price, earnings, or graduation data are excluded rather than estimated.
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · IPEDS. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “-” and never estimated. GetInto.College does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.