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Food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas: 197 locations, +6.3% jobs

Official counts for food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas, 2026 Q1: how many there are, whether they are adding jobs, what they pay, and how Arkansas compares with the other states. From the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Census Bureau, refreshed each quarter.

197
food trucks and mobile food vendors with employees
+6.3%
jobs, year over year
$442
average weekly wage
6.4
per 100,000 residents · US 3.8
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Arkansas against the country · 2026 Q1

ArkansasUnited States
Food trucks and mobile food vendors with employees19713,075
Per 100,000 residents6.43.8
Jobs50642,986
Jobs, year over year+6.3%+7.6%
Locations, year over year+1.0%+8.4%
Average weekly wage$442$523
Rank among states, density10 of 50
Rank among states, job growth29 of 50

What the numbers say

Arkansas has 197 food trucks and mobile food vendors with payroll, employing 506 people. At 6.4 per 100,000 residents the market is denser than the country as a whole, number 10 among the 50 states with published data. Jobs grew +6.3% over the year, behind the national +7.6%. Jobs grew faster than locations, which means existing operators are hiring: demand is being absorbed by the businesses already open.

Average pay at food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas is $442 a week, 15% below the national figure of $523. Budget labor from this number, not from a national guide.

Over five years, from 2021 to 2025, the number of food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas moved +50.0%, from 138 to 207.

Food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas, annual average

  • 2021138
  • 2022158
  • 2023178
  • 2024182
  • 2025207

Jobs at food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas

  • 2021418
  • 2022433
  • 2023510
  • 2024491
  • 2025559

What counts as "food trucks and mobile food vendors" here

Mobile food services: food trucks, carts and stands that prepare and serve food from a vehicle or non-permanent stand. Catering is counted separately. The code is NAICS 722330. BLS counts establishments that report payroll, so a one-person business with no employees is not in these figures; in trades with many solo operators the true number of businesses is higher.

Before you open one in Arkansas

A statewide figure tells you which way the wind blows. It does not tell you whether the corner you are looking at has the households, the income and the gap in competition to support one more. A counts the food trucks and mobile food vendors within reach of one address in Arkansas, reads the county trend from the same BLS table, and scores the plan. The saturation check does a city-level version for free.

Questions people ask

How many food trucks and mobile food vendors are there in Arkansas?

BLS counted 197 food trucks and mobile food vendors with employees in Arkansas in 2026 Q1, employing 506 people. Owner-only businesses with no payroll are not in that count. That is 6.4 per 100,000 residents, against 3.8 nationally.

Are food trucks and mobile food vendors growing in Arkansas?

Yes. Jobs at food trucks and mobile food vendors in Arkansas changed +6.3% over the year to 2026 Q1, and the number of locations changed +1.0%. That ranks Arkansas 29 of 50 states for job growth in this business type. Over five years the location count moved +50.0%.

Is Arkansas a crowded market for food trucks and mobile food vendors?

Arkansas has 6.4 food trucks and mobile food vendors per 100,000 residents, denser than the country as a whole, ranking 10 of 50 states. Density is a statewide average; a Neur report counts the competitors around one address.

Food trucks and mobile food vendors in every state

Densest first. The number is food trucks and mobile food vendors per 100,000 residents in 2026 Q1.

Hawaii · 18.9Alaska · 15.7Idaho · 15.7Oregon · 11.2Wyoming · 11.2Montana · 9.8Maine · 6.8Florida · 6.6Colorado · 6.5Arkansas · 6.4Washington · 6.2Utah · 6Vermont · 5.7Minnesota · 4.6North Dakota · 4.6New Mexico · 4.2Tennessee · 4.2South Dakota · 4Delaware · 3.9Nevada · 3.9North Carolina · 3.7Rhode Island · 3.7Alabama · 3.6Arizona · 3.6Missouri · 3.6Texas · 3.6California · 3.5Louisiana · 3.5New Hampshire · 3.4South Carolina · 3.4Connecticut · 3.3Ohio · 3.3Kansas · 3.2Kentucky · 3.2Nebraska · 3.1Virginia · 3.1Michigan · 3Indiana · 2.9Iowa · 2.9Oklahoma · 2.9Wisconsin · 2.9Maryland · 2.8Pennsylvania · 2.8Mississippi · 2.4West Virginia · 2.4New York · 2.3Illinois · 2.2Massachusetts · 2Georgia · 1.6New Jersey · 1.2

Other business types in Arkansas

Bars & taverns · +16.7% jobsCoffee shops & cafés · +15.5% jobsPet care & grooming · +12.3% jobsNail salons · +12.0% jobsCleaning & janitorial · +4.8% jobsAuto repair shops · +4.5% jobsGyms & fitness studios · +3.6% jobsLandscaping services · +1.7% jobsHair & beauty salons · +1.3% jobsFull-service restaurants · +0.6% jobsQuick-service restaurants · -0.5% jobsChild day care · -4.8% jobsDry cleaning & laundry · -7.6% jobs

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private sector, NAICS 722330, 2026 Q1 (quarterly) and annual averages (five-year series); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year population estimates. This page is generated from those feeds and rewritten when a new quarter publishes. All 14 business types in Arkansas · Growth ranking for Arkansas · Food trucks and mobile food vendors by state