Groundwork

Auto · Metro area · Arkansas

Gas stations in the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area

How the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for gas stations: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #275 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 5 scored metro areas based in Arkansas

Listings
147
115 chain locations (78%)
Official establishments
113
−7.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$268.1M
On gasoline and other fuels · $2,947 a household
Spending per listing
$1.8M
24% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
16.2
49% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
234,140
+3.1% since 2020

See the gas stations around any address in the Fort Smith metro area

The site report maps the gas stations on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Fort Smith metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Households in the Fort Smith metro area spend about $268.1M a year on gasoline and other fuels, or $2,947 per household, 14% above the U.S. average. That works out to $1.8M per station, 24% below the U.S. figure of $2.4M.

There are 147 gas stations on map listings in the Fort Smith metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 78% of them, against 84% across the U.S. That comes to 16.2 for every 10,000 households, 49% above the U.S. rate of 10.9.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as gasoline stations in the Fort Smith metro area was 113 in 2023, down 7.4% from 2019. That is one for every 805 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. Official counts also show 3 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $12.6M have gone to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Fort Smith metro area.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Fort Smith metro area grew 3.1%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For gas stations, the Fort Smith metro area has a Groundwork market score of 39 (lower middle): #275 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 5 scored metro areas based in Arkansas.

How the Fort Smith metro area compares

The same measures for Arkansas and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all gasoline and other fuels by the gas stations counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Gas stations in Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area compared with Arkansas and the U.S.
MeasureFort Smith metro areaArkansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households16.215.110.9
Spending per listing$1.8M$1.9M$2.4M
Households per official establishment8058701,184
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−7.4%−7.2%−3.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.1%+3.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on gasoline and other fuels$2,947$2,886$2,595
Median household income$58,468$60,773$80,734
Groundwork market score3942

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
113−7.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,020
Annual payroll, 2023
$26.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
3Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
147115 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
112The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$12.6M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Fort Smith metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in the Fort Smith metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
234,140+3.1% since 2020
Households
90,992
Median age
39.2
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
1,800 sq. mi.
People per square mile
128
Median household income
$58,468
Average household income
$82,344
Median home value
$171,200
Jobs located here
98,120
Daytime population
234,865Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Fort Smith metro area?

These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the gas stations on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Fort Smith metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Gas stations across Arkansas

Every Arkansas market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Arkansas for gas stations, numbered among those based in Arkansas (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Fort Smith metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Arkansas

Metro areas in Arkansas ranked for gas stations by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR911687.8$3.9M+13.1%#1 of 387
2Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR4343413.9$2M+3.8%#247 of 387
3Hot Springs, AR395612.8$2.2M−0.6%#272 of 387
4Fort Smith, AR-OK3914716.2$1.8M+3.1%#275 of 387
5Jonesboro, AR368115.2$1.8M+3.6%#288 of 387
Texarkana, TX-AR289016.0$1.7M−0.4%#335 of 387
Memphis, TN-MS-AR2199519.0$1.5M−0.3%#363 of 387

Other business types in the Fort Smith metro area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many gas stations are in the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area?

As of September 2026, map listings count 147 gas stations in the Fort Smith metro area. 115 of them (78%) are chain locations. The listings count gas stations. Official counts show 113 businesses with payroll classed as gasoline stations in 2023, down 7.4% from 2019. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area spend on gasoline and other fuels?

About $268.1M a year, or $2,947 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 147 gas stations on map listings, it comes to $1.8M per station. It is estimated from the incomes of the 90,992 households in the Fort Smith metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area compare with the U.S. for gas stations?

The Fort Smith metro area has 16.2 gas stations per 10,000 households, 49% above the U.S. rate of 10.9. Spending per station is $1.8M, 24% below the U.S. figure of $2.4M. At the U.S. ratio of gas stations to household spending, the Fort Smith metro area would have about 112, against 147 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 805 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. The official count fell 7.4% from 2019 to 2023, against −3.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Fort Smith metro area at 234,140 people in 2025, up 3.1% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 90,992 households. Median household income in the Fort Smith metro area is $58,468, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Fort Smith metro area scores 39 for gas stations (lower middle), #275 of 387 scored metro areas.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Fort Smith metro area. It maps the gas stations on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for gas stations · All 56 business types in the Fort Smith metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Smith metro area?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of the Fort Smith metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.