Tools · Security Deposit

Arkansas Security Deposit Calculator (2026)

Enter your rent and move-out date to see the most a Arkansas landlord can charge and the exact date your deposit is due back — up to 2 months of rent, returned 60 days after the tenancy ends and the tenant hands back possession.

Cited to Ark. Code §§18-16-303 to 18-16-306Source: Ark. Code §§18-16-303 to 18-16-306 (FindLaw statute text), corroborated by the Arkansas Attorney General and Legal Aid of Arkansas.

Arkansas security deposit calculator

Security deposit · Arkansas

State

Monthly rent

Move-out date

Arkansas rule applied to your numbers

Maximum deposit

$4,000

Up to 2 months’ rent under Arkansas law. Under Ark. Code 18-16-304 a landlord may not demand or receive a security deposit worth more than two months' rent. This rule sits inside a subchapter that does not apply to small landlords. If a person (with their spouse, minor children, and any entity they control) owns five or fewer rental units in total, the deposit statute does not apply to them at all, so the cap, the return deadline, and the itemization rule do not bind them. The exemption is lost the moment a third party manages the units, including collecting rent, for a fee (Ark. Code 18-16-303).

Return deadline

60 days

60 days after the tenancy ends and the tenant hands back possession. Enter your move-out date for the exact deadline.

These are the Arkansas figures applied to what you entered: a plain summary of the rule and the dates, not a determination that anyone did or did not comply.

If a deposit is wrongly kept

If a landlord bound by the statute wrongfully keeps a deposit, the tenant can recover the property and money owed, damages equal to two times the amount wrongfully withheld, court costs, and reasonable attorney's fees (Ark. Code 18-16-306). A landlord can limit the recovery to the amount actually owed by showing the violation came from a good faith error or a genuine dispute over what was due.

Interest on the deposit

Arkansas does not require a landlord to pay interest on a security deposit. The statute is silent on interest.

Local ordinances

A landlord who does not fall under the statute (five or fewer self-managed units) is not held to the 60-day deadline, the itemization rule, or the two-times penalty. Read your lease closely, since its terms may be the only rules that apply in that situation.

PlainStatute

Security deposit — Arkansas

Maximum deposit: $4,000 · 2 months’ rent
Monthly rent: $2,000
Move-out date: Not entered
Return deadline: 60 days after the tenancy ends and the tenant hands back possession

Source: Ark. Code §§18-16-303 to 18-16-306

https://codes.findlaw.com/ar/title-18-property/ar-code-sect-18-16-304/

⚠ Draft: confirm with the official source before relying on this.

Printed from plainstatute.com
Plain-language summary, not legal advice.

Informational only, not legal advice. Security-deposit rules carry exceptions (lease type, small landlords, city ordinances) this summary cannot weigh. See the full statute and exceptions on the Arkansas security deposit reference, cited to Ark. Code §§18-16-303 to 18-16-306.

How Arkansas security deposits work

Arkansas caps a residential security deposit at two months' rent, but the cap comes with a large exception that catches many renters off guard. The deposit statute (Ark. Code 18-16-303 through 18-16-306) does not apply to a landlord who owns five or fewer rental units and manages them without a paid agent. If your landlord is that small and self-managing, the two-month cap, the 60-day return deadline, and the itemization rule simply do not bind them, and your written lease may be your only protection. When the statute does apply, the landlord must return your deposit within 60 days of the end of the tenancy, or send you an itemized written notice of any deductions plus the remaining balance. A landlord who wrongfully keeps a covered deposit can owe you two times the amount withheld, plus court costs and attorney's fees. Arkansas does not require interest on your deposit or a separate account to hold it.

This calculator shows the Arkansas figures applied to your own rent and dates. It is informational only and not legal advice — exceptions this summary cannot weigh may apply. For the full rules, penalties, and citations, see the Arkansas security deposit reference.

Security deposit calculators for other states

Same tool, each with its own cap and return deadline.