Arsenic contamination in soil has been wide spread in many parts of the world. Arsenic may affect the soil microbial community. An experiment was performed to evaluate the effect of different As concentration (0, 0.1, 1, 10, 100, 200 mg/kg) on soil biological parameters like microbial biomass carbon (MBC), active microbial biomass carbon (AMBC), basal soil respiration (BSR), fluorescein diacetate hydrolase activity (FDA) and dehydrogenase activity (DHA), under three different soil types (Inceptisol, Vertisol, and Entisol). Soil enzymes, microbial biomass, and respiration significantly decreased by arsenic exposure. The soil metabolic quotient increased with increasing As concentration, maximum being observed for Entisol followed by Vertisol > Inceptisol. Except soil enzymes, all the other parameters have decreased at arsenic dose ≥ 0.1 mg/kg, DHA decreased at 10 mg/kg arsenic dose. Decrease in AMBC/MBC ratio showed that under arsenic stress most of the microbial biomass is inactive or dormant. Among the three soils studied, Vertisol was more resilient to As exposure in terms of soil enzymes and biomass, followed by Inceptisol > Entisol. Based on cluster analysis, MBC appears to be a sensitive soil indicator for the effects that are resulting from the arsenic contamination.