SOC 35-3031 · Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations · May 2025

How much do Waiters and Waitresses make in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Waiters and Waitresses in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR is $24,610. The 10th percentile is $23,200 and the 90th percentile is $46,660. Employment is 5,120.

Median annual wage

$24,610

10th percentile
$23,200
25th percentile
$23,630
Median
$24,610
75th percentile
$34,800
90th percentile
$46,660
Mean
$30,420

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

A transit bus driver standing beside a bus at a rest stop in Denali
Denali transit bus driver Gary at Teklanika Rest Stop, August 29, 2019. Photograph by Emily Mesner, National Park Service. Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

Percentile spread

For Waiters and Waitresses, the published 10th percentile is $23,200 and the 90th percentile is $46,660. The difference is $23,460, which is 95.3% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $23,630 to the 75th at $34,800, covers $11,170.

The mean annual wage is $30,420, which sits above the median of $24,610. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR median is 30.1% lower than the national median of $35,230 for Waiters and Waitresses. In 2024 national prices the local median is $27,539, which is 21.8% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 0.3% lower than the Arkansas median of $24,680.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR is 89.364, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $24,610 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Waiters and Waitresses at $27,539 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

10 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Waiters and Waitresses. Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR ranks 5th of 11 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

  • Hot Springs, AR is 44 miles away, with a median of $23,550 and employment of 1,030. That median is 4.3% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $27,470, against $27,539 here.
  • Jonesboro, AR is 118 miles away, with a median of $24,680 and employment of 920. That median is 0.3% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $28,739, against $27,539 here.
  • Fort Smith, AR-OK is 125 miles away, with a median of $23,680 and employment of 1,410. That median is 3.8% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $27,571, against $27,539 here.

Employment share

Waiters and Waitresses accounts for 1.4% of wage-and-salary employment in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR (5,120 of 358,210). Nationally the occupation is 1.5% of employment (2,270,910 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.98 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.

Highest-paying jobs in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR · Waiters and Waitresses by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Waiters and Waitresses make in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Waiters and Waitresses in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR is $24,610. The 10th percentile is $23,200 and the 90th percentile is $46,660. Employment is 5,120.

How does that compare with the national median for Waiters and Waitresses?

The local median is 30.1% lower than the national median of $35,230.

What is Waiters and Waitresses pay in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR is 89.364, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $24,610 is $27,539. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR compare with nearby metros for Waiters and Waitresses?

Hot Springs, AR is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 44 miles away, at $23,550. Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR ranks 5th of 11 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.