This page is built from the open postings on hospital and health-system career sites in Arkansas listed on Betterleap's job board: 1,232 open positions from 34 employers as of October 26, 2026, 0.6% of all open postings on the board, which ranks Arkansas #36 of 51 states. Registered nurses are 54.4% of the state's postings (342). Every figure below is a count or a posted pay range, never a job description; the method is at the end.
Where the jobs are in Arkansas
| # | City | Open postings | of which RN | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fort Smith, AR | 138 | 47 | 6 |
| 2 | Rogers, AR | 107 | 29 | 4 |
| 3 | Conway, AR | 98 | 33 | 6 |
| 4 | Springdale, AR | 88 | 26 | 3 |
| 5 | Pine Bluff, AR | 88 | 23 | 2 |
| 6 | AR, AR | 67 | 11 | 1 |
| 7 | Hot Springs, AR | 62 | 14 | 6 |
| 8 | Clarksville, AR | 62 | 27 | 2 |
Every city links to its live listings; the state's registered-nurse listings are at RN jobs in Arkansas.
Health systems hiring the most in Arkansas
Counted by open postings on the system's own career site, so a system that lists every unit and shift separately ranks higher than one that posts one evergreen requisition per role.
| # | Employer | Open postings in AR |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mercy | 230 |
| 2 | Trinity Health | 192 |
| 3 | Freeman Health System | 160 |
| 4 | Conway Regional Health System | 84 |
| 5 | Acadia Healthcare | 81 |
| 6 | Jefferson Hospital Association | 81 |
| 7 | Universal Health Services | 70 |
| 8 | Encompass Health | 67 |
Which roles Arkansas employers are hiring
| Role | Open postings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| registered nurses | 342 | 54.4% |
| licensed practical nurses | 61 | 9.7% |
| mental health counselors | 53 | 8.4% |
| patient care technicians | 46 | 7.3% |
| case managers | 33 | 5.2% |
| medical assistants | 32 | 5.1% |
| patient access representatives | 31 | 4.9% |
| radiologic technologists | 31 | 4.9% |
What nursing jobs pay in Arkansas
For reference, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 29,400 registered nurses employed in Arkansas with a mean wage of $39.19 an hour ($81,520 a year), OEWS May 2025.
Only 4.4% of Arkansas postings state a pay range with both ends: too few to publish a posted median (the rule is at least 100 postings and a median within a third of the BLS mean). The BLS figure above is the reliable reference for this state.
Licensing: working as a nurse in Arkansas
Arkansas is a member of the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) according to NCSBN's compact map (read September 26, 2026, which lists 40 member states). A nurse whose primary state of residence is Arkansas can hold a multistate license and practice in every other compact state without a new application, and a nurse with a multistate license issued elsewhere can accept a job in Arkansas without waiting for an endorsement. The state's board of nursing contact page is on NCSBN.
Licensing is issued by the state board of nursing: an approved nursing program, the NCLEX-RN (or NCLEX-PN), a background check and the board's application. The board's own pages are the source of truth for fees and timelines; this page does not restate them.
How this is built
- Scope: open postings on public hospital and health-system career sites, counted as of the date shown; job descriptions are never republished. Only postings whose location is in Arkansas count here; a posting listing several sites counts once, at its first site.
- Pay point: midpoint of the posted range, hourly (annual ÷ 2080), only where both ends and the unit are posted. The top of a posted range is never used as "the pay". A posted median is published only with at least 100 postings and within a third of the BLS mean.
- Freshness: counts are refreshed monthly and the page shows its date; a posting that leaves an employer's site drops out.
- References: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, state estimates; NCSBN Nurse Licensure Compact map data, read September 26, 2026.
Data as of October 26, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How many open nursing jobs are there in Arkansas right now?
1,232 open postings from 34 hospital and health-system employers in Arkansas as of October 26, 2026, 342 of them for registered nurses. Fort Smith has the most (138), then Rogers (107).
What do registered nurses earn in Arkansas?
The BLS OEWS May 2025 mean for registered nurses in Arkansas is $39.19 an hour, $81,520 a year, across 29,400 employed RNs. Too few open postings state a pay range for a posted median to be published for this state.
Is Arkansas a Nurse Licensure Compact state?
Yes. Arkansas is an NLC member per NCSBN's compact map (read September 26, 2026), so a multistate license issued by another compact state is valid there.
Which hospitals are hiring nurses in Arkansas?
By open postings on their own career sites: Mercy (230), Trinity Health (192), Freeman Health System (160) and 5 more listed above, as of October 26, 2026.
