Kapaa, HI

Micro Area Profile

73,731 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Kapaa, HI micropolitan area.

58out of 100
Area Score
Top 46% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
OpportunityTop 1% of 835 metro and micro areas measured87
Growth522nd of 834 metro and micro areas measured43
Housing affordability830th of 835 metro and micro areas measured32
ClimateTop 1% of 835 metro and micro areas measured96
Physical resilience639th of 835 metro and micro areas measured34
Access805th of 835 metro and micro areas measured12
Economic stabilityTop 26% of 835 metro and micro areas measured71
The quick read

Kapaa ranks in the top 1% of metro and micro areas measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 2.4% and median household income of $97,668.

Residential permitting has slowed: 119 units authorized over the past twelve months, 18% below the prior year.

Housing costs more relative to local incomes than in most metro and micro areas measured: rent takes 31% of renter income and the median home is 7.9 times what its owners earn.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
73,731
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$97,668
Top 4% nationally
Density
119/sq mi
619.8 sq mi of land
Median age
43.1
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Hawaii
Nearest major airport
HDH
101 mi · Kawaihapai Airfield
Median home value
$873,200
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 2.4%, lower than in 97% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment grew 0.5% over the past year, to 37,674 employed residents.

Median household income of $97,668 is higher than in 96% of measured US metro and micro areas.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$5,4012024 ACS 5-Year$97,668Top 4%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,8402024 ACS 5-Year$43,836Top 16%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year9.4%Top 17%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.7 min2024 ACS 5-Year24.8 minBottom 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year30.1%Top 33%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year72.0%19th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202637,674Bottom 49%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+3.6%Top 12%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026+0.5%Top 24%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202638,60148th percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year81.9%Top 15%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.6%2024 ACS 5-Year1.4%88th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.4%Bottom 19%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20262.4%Top 3%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year8.6%48th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/077.02.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 2.4% in July 2026. It has been falling, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

38% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 49% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 14.2 students for every full-time teacher across 21 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
21
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
14.2
across all schools here
Math proficiency
37.6%
2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency
49.2%
2018-19 school year
The 12 largest of 21 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Kauai High SchoolHawaii Department of Education1,01614.537%57%
Kapaa High SchoolHawaii Department of Education1,00517.332%52%
Kapaa Elementary SchoolHawaii Department of Education84416.235%39%
Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle SchoolHawaii Department of Education82614.043%52%
Elsie H Wilcox Elementary SchoolHawaii Department of Education74314.647%55%
Waimea High SchoolHawaii Department of Education71114.822%47%
King Kaumualii Elementary SchoolHawaii Department of Education52412.548%53%
Kapaa Middle SchoolHawaii Department of Education50716.427%40%
Waimea Canyon Middle SchoolHawaii Department of Education46713.325%38%
Kalaheo Elementary SchoolHawaii Department of Education37114.347%51%
Eleele Elementary SchoolHawaii Department of Education36714.149%47%
Koloa Elementary SchoolHawaii Department of Education35515.467%67%

47.4% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Hawaii’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,866 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.21% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $2,332, some 25% above the $1,870 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $2,332 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $93,300 a year, about 96% of the median household income here of $97,668.

The typical renter household here spends 31% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,870 a month.

A median home at $873,200 costs 7.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $109,877, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
31.0%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
7.9×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$2,332
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,870
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$873,200
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Kapaa’s median household income of $97,668, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income ±0.52024 ACS 5-Year7.9Bottom 1%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year68.6%43rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±612024 ACS 5-Year30,47144th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,777Bottom 3%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$2,866Bottom 3%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$2,332Bottom 2%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$782024 ACS 5-Year$1,870Bottom 3%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$15,3732024 ACS 5-Year$873,20099th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$1102024 ACS 5-Year$1,86646th percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$6,4162024 ACS 5-Year$109,877Top 9%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.01%2024 ACS 5-Year0.21%1st percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year31.0%Bottom 24%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±3482024 ACS 5-Year3,99178th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year13.1%91st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year9.3%67th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±5402024 ACS 5-Year6,83964th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

43/ 100
Ranks 522 of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was downward, in a series running from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 1% since 2020, reaching 73,840 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 119 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

At 1.6 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
119
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.6
Bottom 31% nationally
Year over year
−18%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202474k73k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Weather & climate

11 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 87°F and January a low of 65°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 17.8 inches.

50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station BARKING SANDS, 5.2 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND3.5"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals17.8"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals0.0"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals65°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals87°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals111991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals8°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

34 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tsunami and wildfire, with inland flooding alone responsible for 78% of it.

LandslideModerate
WildfireElevated
Inland floodingModerate
LightningModerate
TsunamiHigh

Low or minimal exposure: hurricane, coastal flooding, earthquake, drought, tornado, strong wind, cold wave, volcanic activity, hail, heat wave, winter weather, ice storm, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

No airport meeting the AreaProfile major-airport definition lies within 100 miles; the nearest is 101 miles away.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year94.3%Top 2%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle101 miBottom 4%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle0Bottom 1%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year3.9%Top 5%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Kawaihapai AirfieldHDH101 mi9,007 ft
Kalaeloa (John Rodgers Fld)JRF116 mi8,365 ft
Daniel K Inouye IntlHNL124 mi12,360 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
58
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

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