County outline
Where Hot Spring County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 98.8% of Hot Spring County’s measured area and water for 1.2%. Its combined area converts to 1,611.4 square kilometers or approximately 398,191 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 614.944 | 1,592.698 | 393,564.2 |
| Water | 7.23 | 18.726 | 4,627.2 |
| Total | 622.174 | 1,611.423 | 398,191.4 |
How Hot Spring County compares
By original Census land area, Hot Spring County ranks #50 of 75 in Arkansas and #1574 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 0.95 times the Arkansas county-equivalent median of 647.2 square miles. It accounts for 1.2% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Arkansas ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Hot Spring County
The Census Bureau estimates that 33,451 people lived in Hot Spring County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #1,393 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #22 of 75 in Arkansas. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 33,049, the population has grown by 402 (+1.2%), compared with +3.4% for Arkansas as a whole.
With 614.9 square miles of land, that is 54 people per square mile (21 per km²), placing Hot Spring County #1,470 nationally for density and #19 in Arkansas. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Arkansas median is 28. Put another way, there are about 12 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 33,086 | 33,079 | 33,154 | 33,214 | 33,294 | 33,451 |
| Change | — | −7 | +75 | +60 | +80 | +157 |
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates. Estimates are revised each year and are not decennial census counts. Density divides the whole population by the whole county’s land area, so it describes an average, not how settlement is distributed within the county. Population sources and methods.
Cities and towns in Hot Spring County
6 incorporated places lie at least partly in Hot Spring County. Together they are home to 12,930 people (38.7%); the other 20,521 (61.3%) live outside any incorporated place, in unincorporated communities and rural areas.
The largest is Malvern city, with 11,144 residents in the county.
| Incorporated place | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malvern cityCounty seat | 11,144 | +2.7% | 9.698 |
| Rockport city | 709 | +0.4% | 4.433 |
| Midway town | 375 | 0% | 3.521 |
| Donaldson town | 282 | +1.8% | 0.591 |
| Perla town | 253 | +0.4% | 0.963 |
| Friendship town | 167 | +0.6% | 0.712 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each place inside Hot Spring County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer, for the whole place even where it extends into other counties. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
Hot Spring County is a central county of the Malvern, AR Micropolitan Statistical Area. Hot Spring County is the area’s only county equivalent, so the micro area has the same 614.9 square miles of land. By combined land it ranks #347 of 542 micropolitan areas, and #409 by population. It belongs to the Hot Springs-Malvern, AR Combined Statistical Area.
ZIP codes
13 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Hot Spring County; 4 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
71901719137192171923719297193371941719427194371964720847210472167
ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are the Census Bureau’s approximations of USPS ZIP Code service areas, from the 2020 Census relationship files. Lighter codes have less than half of their land in this county. Post-office-box and single-address ZIP Codes have no tabulation area.
Counties bordering Hot Spring County
Hot Spring County shares a land border with 6 county equivalents. Each of them has more land than Hot Spring County. The largest neighbor is Clark County (866 mi²) and the smallest is Grant County (631.9 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Hot Spring County forms a block of 4,961.7 mi² of land, of which it holds 12.4%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Hot Spring | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark County | 866 | 1.4× larger | Compare |
| Montgomery County | 780.5 | 1.3× larger | Compare |
| Saline County | 723.5 | 1.2× larger | Compare |
| Garland County | 677.6 | 1.1× larger | Compare |
| Dallas County | 667.3 | 1.1× larger | Compare |
| Grant County | 631.9 | about the same | Compare |
How big is Hot Spring County compared with U.S. states?
Hot Spring County has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.7 times as much. Arkansas’s county land could hold about 85 areas the size of Hot Spring County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 24.8 miles (39.9 km) on each side. Real county shapes are rarely square, so this is a scale reference rather than a width or driving distance.
State figures are the sums of each state’s county-equivalent land measurements in the same Census release, so states and counties are compared on the same basis. Published state totals can differ slightly because of rounding. Compare all states · Counties bigger than entire states.
What stands out about Hot Spring County?
Hot Spring County has more land than 1,648 of the other 3,221 county equivalents in the dataset.
A median is the middle county-equivalent measurement, not the average of the largest and smallest. All three bars use the same linear scale. Very small areas may appear as a thin sliver; the labels retain their values.
Does including water change its rank?
Using land plus water places Hot Spring County at #1,662 nationally by total area, 88 places farther from the top than its land rank. Other county equivalents gain more area when their water measurements are included.
Its water share is 1.2%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2%. The two percentages are within 0.1 percentage points of each other. This describes the statistical geography’s land/water mix, not flood exposure or developable land.
Closest positions in the national land ranking
These entries sit immediately beside Hot Spring County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1573 | Linn County, Missouri | 615.6 | Compare |
| #1574 | Hot Spring County, Arkansas | 614.9 | This county |
| #1575 | Maury County, Tennessee | 613.1 | Compare |
Calculated from the same Census release as the area table. Total-area order uses original ALAND + AWATER; water shares and chart labels use published square miles. Calculation details.
Representative coordinates
The Census internal point is 34.315177, -92.944147. It represents a location inside the geography; it is not necessarily the centroid or the address of a courthouse.
Source and precision
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 Gazetteer Files, Counties. Original ALAND: 1,592,697,253 m²; AWATER: 18,725,588 m². Rankings use ALAND; exact ties use ascending GEOID. Tables preserve Census-published square miles to three decimals, with conversions based on those values.
Common questions
How big is Hot Spring County?
Hot Spring County, Arkansas has 614.9 square miles (1,592.7 km²) of land and 7.23 square miles of water, for a total area of 622.2 square miles. It ranks #1574 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Hot Spring County the largest county in Arkansas?
No. Hot Spring County ranks #50 of 75 in Arkansas by land area. The largest is Union County, with 1,039.1 square miles of land.
What counties border Hot Spring County?
Hot Spring County shares a land border with Garland County, Clark County, Grant County, Dallas County, Saline County, and Montgomery County.
What is the population of Hot Spring County?
The Census Bureau estimates Hot Spring County had 33,451 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #1,393 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 54 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Hot Spring County?
The county seat of Hot Spring County is Malvern.
What cities and towns are in Hot Spring County?
Hot Spring County has 6 incorporated places. The most populous five are Malvern city, Rockport city, Midway town, Donaldson town, and Perla town; 20,521 residents live outside any incorporated place.
Is Hot Spring County part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the Malvern, AR Micropolitan Statistical Area.
How many ZIP codes are in Hot Spring County?
13 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Hot Spring County, and 4 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Hot Spring County compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.7 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in Hot Spring County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 393,564 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 398,191 acres. One square mile equals 640 acres.
Why might another source show a different area?
Check whether it reports land or total area, its Census vintage, and its rounding. Our guide explains how to reconcile county area figures.
Can this establish a property boundary?
No. Statistical measurements and generalized maps do not establish property lines. Consult the relevant local surveying or land-records authority.