Moving to
Kahului.

All Kahului data Compare Kahului

28,288people live here $98,077median household income▲ 21% above US $1,488median rent per monthNear US average $862,600median home value▲ 159% above US

Kahului is an unincorporated community in Maui County, HI. It has no city government: the county runs it, and the Census counts it as its own place.

What it's like to live in Kahului

Kahului is an unincorporated community in Hawaii with county unemployment below the national average, household incomes running above the national average, commutes that run shorter than most cities, and air quality that stays clean most of the year. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Kahului deals with home prices well above the national average, a population that has been shrinking, and fewer dining and entertainment options than a bigger city.

The good

Low unemployment in the county
Higher-than-average incomes
Short commutes
Clean air
Average class sizes

The not so good

High home prices
Shrinking population
Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options

How Kahului compares

Median household income

Kahului$98,077

Hawaii avg$100,389

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Kahului$1,488

Hawaii avg$1,971

US$1,413

Median home value

Kahului$862,600

Hawaii avg$839,100

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Kahului

Based on Kahului's median rent, home value and household income

To rent

$2,976

up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit

Income to keep rent under 30%: $59,520 a year
43% of Kahului renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$172,520

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $86,260
Homes cost 8.8× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of livingNear US average

$1,488/mo median rent

Rent is pretty middle of the road, at $1,488 a month median. Not a bargain, not a budget-buster. About typical for a city this size. Home prices are steep, with a median around $862,600. Renting first to get a feel for the city before buying is often the more practical route.

Median home value $862,600 · 43% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

2.7% county unemployment

Unemployment in Maui County is 2.7%, well below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Maui County (county-wide)

Safety

308 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction

Kahului doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Maui Police Department jurisdiction as a whole, which runs close to the national average for violent crime and covers many communities. Individual neighborhoods can differ a lot from that overall rate.

Property crime 2596/100k · Policed by Maui Police Department (county-wide rate) · 2025 data

Getting around▼ 12% below US

23 min average commute

Commutes are reasonable, averaging 22.8 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 5% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

68%

Carpool

20%

Work from home

5.0%

Public transit

3.2%

Other

2.8%

Walk

1.1%

Climate

Summers are hot and humid, with highs regularly hitting 89°F, and winters are mild, with lows rarely dropping below 64°F. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Education & workforce▼ 32% below US

25% bachelor's degree or higher

College degree attainment runs below average at 25%. That tends to reflect a more trade and working-class economy, which can be great or limiting depending on the industry.

Schools

5 public schools inside the boundary

There are 5 public schools inside the boundary and 3 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 16:1, close to the national average of 16:1.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Haleakalā National Park (24 miles away). There are 5 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Kahului's strongest points are county unemployment below the national average and household incomes running above the national average; the main tradeoffs are home prices well above the national average and a population that has been shrinking. A year of median rent ($1,488/mo) equals 18% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit job seekers (county-wide unemployment is low).

See all the data for Kahului →·All Hawaii cities →