City comparison
Austin, TX is about 400 miles (650 km) from Fort Smith, AR in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 500 miles, or about 8 h 15 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Austin, TX to Fort Smith, AR takes about 48 min, covering roughly 400 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Austin has a population of 958,202, vs 89,315 in Fort Smith — about 10.7× larger by population. By land area, Austin covers about 325 sq mi vs 64 sq mi for Fort Smith.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Austin | Fort Smith | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,549/mo | $798/mo | 94.1% higher in Austin |
| Median home value | $461,500 | $155,600 | 196.6% higher in Austin |
| Median household income | $86,556 | $50,799 | 70.4% higher in Austin |
| Groceries index | 94.2 | 94.1 | ≈ equal (Austin slightly higher) |
| Utilities index | 83.2 | 75.7 | 9.9% higher in Austin |
| Transportation index | 96.6 | 95.8 | 0.9% higher in Austin |
| Healthcare index | 96.1 | 95.3 | 0.9% higher in Austin |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Austin, you'd need $72,418 in Fort Smith to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Fort Smith, AR is about 27.6% cheaper overall than Austin, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 122% higher in Austin than in Fort Smith. If you earn $80,000 in Austin, you'd need about $57,935 in Fort Smith to keep the same standard of living.