Find your fireplace in Craighead County.

For most homeowners here it comes down to gas or electric. With an average winter low near 30°F and only 3,451 heating degree days, Craighead County simply doesn't see the sustained cold that makes wood or pellet heating worth the investment for most households—natural gas fireplaces and inserts are the most requested upgrade where gas service reaches, and electric fireplaces are a popular no-venting option for bedrooms, dens, and homes without gas access. Wood-burning units still get installed occasionally, usually in older farmhouses outside Jonesboro or by homeowners who want the look and feel of a real fire, often burning the oak and hickory that's plentiful in the county's bottomland timber. Pellet stoves are rarer still; Lignetics and Indeck Energy Services pellets are available regionally, but very few local dealers stock pellet appliances because the demand just isn't there in a climate this mild.

Gas fireplace and insert installations almost always require a permit, since they involve running or tapping a gas line, and the work needs to be done by a licensed gas fitter regardless of whether you're inside Jonesboro city limits or in unincorporated parts of the county. Your local building department will want to inspect the gas connection and venting before signing off. Electric fireplaces are usually simpler—a plug-in unit typically doesn't need a permit at all, though a built-in electric fireplace that requires a new dedicated circuit does need an electrical permit and inspection. Most hearth retailers we match homeowners with handle this paperwork as part of the installation, so it's rarely something you're chasing down yourself.

Yes, though it's an uncommon choice here. Wood stoves and inserts aren't restricted by anything like the air quality curtailments you'd see in a colder, smokier region—Craighead County has no wood-smoke non-attainment designation—but the mild climate means most homeowners find a wood stove is more work than benefit as a primary heat source. Where wood units do go in, they're typically burning local oak or hickory, and homeowners are usually after the ambiance of a real fire, backup heat during ice storms and power outages, or a farmhouse aesthetic rather than day-to-day heating. If that's your goal, a handful of countywide retailers still carry EPA-certified wood stoves and can handle chimney or venting work.

There is, though it's limited compared to gas or electric fuel supply. Lignetics and Indeck Energy Services both distribute pellets into the broader Arkansas Delta region, and a supplier serving Craighead County can typically special-order bags even if they're not a big seller on the shelf. What you won't find is a large local market for pellet stoves themselves—very few dealers stock the appliances because the mild winters here don't generate the demand that drives pellet heating in colder parts of the country. If you're moving into a home that already has a pellet stove installed, expect to plan pellet purchases a bit further ahead rather than picking up bags on short notice.

Gas fireplace, insert, and stove installations generally run $3,500–$8,000 depending on whether an existing gas line reaches the install location or a new line needs to be run. Electric fireplaces are the most affordable option—the unit itself usually costs $200–$3,000, with installation labor adding roughly $300–$1,000 for anything beyond a plug-and-play placement, more if a built-in unit needs a new dedicated circuit. Wood stove installs, when a homeowner does go that route, typically run $4,000–$8,500 including chimney work. Pellet stove installs land in a similar range but are quoted less often simply because so few local dealers install them regularly.

Because winters here are mild—3,451 heating degree days is a modest heating load compared to much of the country—most Craighead County homeowners are sizing a fireplace for supplemental warmth and ambiance rather than whole-home heating, which changes the math from what you'd see in a colder climate. A gas fireplace in the 20,000–30,000 BTU range is usually plenty for a single living space, and an electric unit sized to the room's square footage covers most bedroom or den installs without any venting considerations at all. A local dealer walking your specific room, insulation, and existing HVAC setup will get you a more precise number than a generic BTU chart, which is exactly what the retailers in our directory do as part of a quote.

For an average home—covering the fireplace, the vent pipe, and basic installation—a budget between $3,900 and $5,500 gives you a lot of options across wood, gas, and pellet. By the time you add finish work, gas line, and electrical, the average complete installation lands between $5,000 and $12,000 all-in. In a remodel or new build, a good rule is to put about 2.5% of the total project cost toward the fireplace.

On average, a fireplace adds back to the home about the same amount you spent installing it. Add the monthly savings from heating the rooms you actually use instead of the whole house—often hundreds of dollars a year—and the value case is strong before you even count what a fire does for how your family uses the room.

Yes—by creating a comfort zone. A furnace heats every square foot of the house just to warm the one room you're in; a gas fireplace on low burns roughly a sixth of the gas a typical furnace does. Set the furnace around 55–60 degrees as a baseline, then heat the rooms your family actually uses. Families who heat this way commonly save $20–$60 a month.

If you're putting a fire in your house on purpose, it's best to work with an expert. Unless you're genuinely experienced in framing, gas line, vent pipe, and the national code on clearances to combustibles, have a professional do it—and ideally the same company that sells you the fireplace, so warranty, service, and liability all live under one roof.