Are you ready for a city showdown? Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove, Arkansas, have a lot of things going for them, but they also have several issues. Which one is better, and which one should you avoid?
Pea Ridge, AR, is close to Bentonville, has a great infrastructure, and takes pride in their schools. Prairie Grove, AR, is close to Fayetteville, takes pride in their historic homes, and they have affordable housing. Pea Ridge doesn’t have a downtown, while Prairie Grove is too far from I-49.
The city battle is alive and well, and today, we’re going to shine some light on the pros and cons of Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove, Arkansas. Let’s get started!
Video:
Pea Ridge vs. Prairie Grove Introduction
Before we get into the battle, I want to give you a little introduction to these two cities.
Pea Ridge sits on the North side of Northwest Arkansas adjacent to Bentonville in Benton County. It has around 7,200 residents, and while that might sound small to you, we will discuss why that matters in a minute. Prairie Grove is on the far Southwest side of Northwest Arkansas and has around 7,500 residents.
Both have unique styles, but both are growing and becoming great towns. But let’s discuss the pros and cons of each city.
Pea Ridge Pros
Pea Ridge is one of those towns that feel more like a quaint, small midwestern town than an urban suburb. The farms that surround the town might feel more like somewhere in Wisconsin than in Northwest Arkansas.
But let’s talk about the pros of Pea Ridge.
Close to Bentonville
Pea Ridge is adjacent to Bentonville, and it’s so close that you only need to take one road to get between the two places. If you’ve been researching what city to move to, whether it be Bentonville, Bella Vista, or Centerton, a good option to any of these places for you might be Pea Ridge.
Actually, it’s easier to get to Bentonville from Pea Ridge than Centerton. If you like Bentonville’s culture, you may want to check out Pea Ridge.
Affordable Housing
You can find great affordable housing in Pea Ridge, including new construction. There are some great Rausch Coleman homes in Pea Ridge in the low $250,000 range. Ross Coleman is one of the better builders in the area that builds more expensive homes in other towns.
Pea Ridge has a variety of older and newer homes in the area that range from $275,000 to $350,000. Obviously, several homes are outside of that range, but that’s the sweet spot for Pea Ridge.
Good Equity
One of the questions I get asked the most is what the equity factor is on homes in the area. How much is your home going to appreciate in the coming years based on inflation and the growth of the area?
While I can’t predict the future, I can tell you what might happen based on several observed factors.
Because of its proximity to Bentonville, Pea Ridge houses will only increase in value. Bentonville, with its culture and industry, is steadily growing. The close proximity of Pea Ridge makes it an excellent town to move to, so your equity can only increase.
Infrastructure
Pea Ridge’s infrastructure is amazing, and I’m not talking about the parks, trail systems, and cultural infrastructure. I’m actually referring to sewer systems, electrical power, natural gas, roads, and other similar things.
Their infrastructure is actually better than in most of Northwest Arkansas in terms of growth. Pea Ridge is ready to explode, and the city planners know this, so they’ve put more money into the systems supporting this growth.
Businesses, schools, and residences will follow, and since it’s already in place, Pea Ridge will explode in the next several years.
Good Schools
Throughout Northwest Arkansas, there are a handful of schools that are considered to be the best, and Pea Ridge schools make that list. In fact, Pea Ridge recently built a new high school in anticipation of the explosive population growth.
But many people leverage Bentonville or Centerton to take advantage of Pea Ridge schools.
Pea Ridge is known for their good schools, great football teams, and other great sports teams. So, if you’re moving to the area for the schools, definitely check out Pea Ridge and do your due research before choosing an area to move to.
Prairie Grove Pros
In our continued city battle, we need to now move over to Prairie Grove and talk about why that’s also a great place to live. As we discuss these pros, you will see a lot in common with Pea Ridge, as there are several similarities.
Close to Fayetteville
Prairie Grove is close to Fayetteville but maybe not as close as Pea Ridge is to Bentonville. Farmington is between Fayetteville and Prairie Grove, but if you lived in Prairie Grove, you still have easy access to Fayetteville.
If you know anything about Fayetteville, you know it’s not 100% a college town. However, it has a population of about 97,000, which is not made up of all college students. There are a lot of mixed ages, so you have an eclectic blend of people.
Many things happen in Fayetteville, such as concerts, great homes, and awesome businesses. Long story short, Prairie Grove is close to Fayetteville, which many people love.
Historic Homes
One of my favorite things to talk about is homes, and Prairie Grove has so many historic homes, which is unique to Prairie Grove. Not many cities have so many historic homes that are kept up and somewhat restored to their natural beauty.
You might find some restored homes in Rogers or Bentonville, but not to this extent. The homes in Prairie Grove are truly historic, and it seems that not many are taken down like you might find in other cities.
Of course, as you drive through Prairie Grove, you’ll see some homes that need some TLC, but other than that, the biggest perk about this town is their great houses.
Growing Downtown
Another perk of Prairie Grove that I love is its downtown section. It’s somewhat smaller than many towns in the area, and in fact, many Northwest Arkansas towns don’t have much of a downtown to speak of, but I love their antique vibe.
Certain cities in Northwest Arkansas have true downtown sections, such as the following:
- Bentonville
- Fayetteville
- Rogers
- Springdale
The great thing about Prairie Grove is that its downtown section is growing as more businesses move into that area. They’re also currently redoing some parts of the downtown, so that should tell you that they’re preparing for growth.
Affordable Housing
As with Pea Ridge, Prairie Grove has a lot of affordable housing, and from a realistic standpoint, you have more options in Prairie Grove than you do in Pea Ridge. And more developments are on their way. Between these new developments and older people selling their homes, you have several more options than you would find in Pea Ridge.
Aquatic Center
Prairie Grove has an aquatic center and other lovely parks in the area. But the aquatic center is something really special, as it includes water slides and pools. They offer swimming lessons, water aerobics, and pool parties. The general admission price is quite low considering other waterparks in the area.
Of course, Northwest Arkansas has a few other aquatic centers, sort of. There’s one in Rogers and in Bentonville. Fayetteville has a few parks with pools, such as Walker and Gully parks. While they have pools, they aren’t true aquatic parks as they don’t have the slides.
But Prairie Grove has a true aquatic center.
Easy Drive Roads
The last item on the list of pros for Prairie Grove is the easy-access road that goes between Fayetteville and Prairie Grove. It’s a 5-lane highway that connects Prairie Grove to I-49 and Fayetteville and anywhere else you want to go.
Pea Ridge doesn’t have that as much, but we’ll address that in the next section.
Pea Ridge Cons
As with every pro list, we have to have a cons list, and while Pea Ridge has several perks, it also has several issues. So let’s discuss them.
Not Much Going On
While Pea Ridge is growing, and city officials/planners are anticipating more things moving to the area, there isn’t much going on currently as of August 2023. Of course, the hope is that it will take off soon.
They put a Wendy’s and Domino’s in Pea Ridge within the last year, so businesses are investing in the area. But it’s early yet, so I think it’s one of those “get in early and hope for the best” kind of thing, you know? And I think that’s the intended plan due to the infrastructure I mentioned earlier.
That then begs the question, “What’s the downtown area going to look like?” As I’ve said earlier, Pea Ridge doesn’t have a downtown, but with the growth planned, is there going to be one eventually?
Currently, Pea Ridge is leveraging Bentonville’s downtown for things like concerts, shopping, and other events.
One Major Highway and It’s Two Lanes
There is only one major road in and out of Pea Ridge, which is a two-lane highway. With many residents commuting for work in Bentonville, the traffic can become a little intense at times. As Pea Ridge eventually expands, they’ll want to expand that highway to at least a 4-lane or 5-lane road.
Of course, there aren’t any plans to do so yet, but let’s hope that something like that is in the works. But this is something to keep in mind if you’re looking to move to Pea Ridge and need to commute to Bentonville.
Housing Seems More Expensive
When you’re comparing Pea Ridge to Prairie Grove, you’ll find that housing in Pea Ridge seems more expensive. I know I said that there is affordable housing in Pea Ridge, but it’s not as affordable as in, say, Prairie Grove.
Pea Ridge might be betting on Bentonville’s development, as they should, but if you’re looking for affordable housing, you might want to look at Prairie Grove. But that means that you’re going to lose out on some of the perks of living so close to Bentonville.
No Downtown
Pea Ridge, as I’ve said before, has no downtown section. I don’t know if they’ve mapped this out in the future or not, but there’s really nowhere to go when you want to hang out, have events, or even shop at unique places.
It’s like they didn’t really plan out the town and started building where they wanted to. There are several intersections and groups of homes, but there are no gathering spaces. So keep that in mind when you’re researching places to move to.
Prairie Grove Cons
We’ve talked about Pea Ridge’s pros and cons, but our city battle won’t be complete without discussing Prairie Grove’s cons, yes? Let’s take a look at what’s wrong with Prairie Grove.
Bit Far From Farmington
The first con of Prairie Grove is sort of a comparison to Pea Ridge, and that’s the distance from Prairie Grove to Fayetteville vs. Pea Ridge to Bentonville. It’s further to Fayetteville from Prairie Grove than Pea Ridge is from Bentonville.
However, the road getting to Fayetteville from Prairie Grove is easier to travel than the road between Pea Ridge and Bentonville. And it’s less busy than that road, so that’s something to remember.
Another perk related to this is that there’s another town adjacent to Prairie Grove on the way to Fayetteville–Farmington. You can do some things there and then go home if you’re not up for going all the way to Fayetteville.
More Going On Than Pea Ridge
While Prairie Grove doesn’t have many things going on, it has more happening than Pea Ridge due to its downtown section. In fact, they have several things happening, including festivals and other similar events.
Prairie Grove has a lot of history with building up the area and their developments, which Pea Ridge doesn’t have currently. But if you want more action than Pea Ridge, Prairie Grove is the place to be.
Further to I-49
If you need easy access to I-49, Prairie Grove might not be the place for you. Prairie Grove is a bit further from the main interstate highway connecting most Northwest Arkansas cities. And if you’re living in Pea Ridge, you actually have a shorter drive to I-49 than from Prairie Grove.
Keep this in mind if you’re coming here for a job and if you’re bouncing between the two cities, trying to decide between them.
Some Homes Need Maintenance and Repair
Even though there are several nice historic homes in Prairie Grove, several more need a lot of repair and maintenance, as they’ve been neglected over the years.
Prairie Grove has a lot of new construction, great historical homes, and a great downtown section. And it has several perks. But, as you look around Prairie Grove, especially if you’re looking to invest in some properties and flip them, remember that several homes need some TLC.
Conclusion
And that’s the city battle, folks. Prairie Grove vs. Pea Ridge–two up-and-coming towns that leverage Bentonville and Fayetteville for many benefits–seem to come out almost even. Depending on your goals, job prospects, and other needs, either one is a good place to move to.
So, if you’re going to be in the area and want to tour both of these towns, let me know, and I’ll give you the $10 tour!