Moving to Kailua
Hawaii County gains about 6.0 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.
Where people come from and where they go, top counties
Within Hawaii, other states or abroad
Income per tax return
People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Hawaii County; flows under 20 returns are not published.
- Who moves here
- 7.2% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 6.0% from another state.
- Who arrives and who leaves
- Households moving into Hawaii County report $84,900 a year in income on average; those leaving, $62,500, so newcomers earn more than leavers.
- Income you would need
- $70,200 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
- Rent or buy
- Median rent is $1,754 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $2,647 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $667,400.
- Getting to work
- 20 minutes each way on average; 10.2% work from home.
- If it is close but not quite
- Martinez, GA matches it on character for less of your income. Compare the two
All 5 moving measures
| Measure | Kailua | Among 6,645 places | Vs median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moved here in the past year1 | 7.2% | 26% above | |
| Moved from another state1 | 6.0% | 204% above | |
| Net movers per 1,000 people6County figure | 6.0 | above (median -0.6) | |
| Income of households moving in6County figure | $84,921 | 20% above | |
| Income of households moving out6County figure | $62,523 | 11% below |
What it costs to live here
The median home costs 7.6 years of the median household's income, more than in 95% of the 2,301 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track.
Could you afford it?
Uses the median rent in Kailua, $1,754 a month. It runs in your browser and stores nothing.
Like Kailua, but easier on the budget
Places that match Kailua on character (size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, remote work and climate) but where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income. Cost was left out of the match on purpose.
Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Kailua.
All 15 cost and housing measures
| Measure | Kailua | Among 6,645 places | Vs median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median gross rent1 | $1,754 | 28% above | |
| Rent to income1 | 23.9% | 17% above | |
| Property tax rate1 | 0.3% | 63% below | |
| Home price to income1 | 7.6x | 99% above | |
| Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms2County figure | $2,081 | 29% above | |
| HUD area median income3County figure | $98,300 | 8% below | |
| Property tax paid (median)1 | $2,290 | 30% below | |
| Median home value1 | $667,400 | 109% above | |
| Home prices, 1-year change4County figure | 6.1% | 92% above | |
| Home prices, 5-year change4County figure | 58.5% | 14% above | |
| Homeownership1 | 67.0% | 1% above | |
| Renters paying 30%+1 | 39.1% | 23% below | |
| Owner costs with a mortgage1 | $2,647 | 41% above | |
| Vacant homes1 | 23.4% | 232% above | |
| Median year built1 | 1985 | 0% above |
Work and pay
Mean commute is 20 min, 18% below the median place.
More on work and pay, against the typical place
All 10 work and pay measures
| Measure | Kailua | Among 6,645 places | Vs median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income1 | $88,211 | 10% above | |
| Income per person1 | $45,971 | 15% above | |
| Unemployment1 | 4.0% | 17% below | |
| Average annual pay5County figure | $61,757 | 6% below | |
| Pay growth, 1 year5County figure | 6.7% | 81% above | |
| Jobs5County figure | 74,168 | 51% below | |
| Poverty rate1 | 14.3% | 33% above | |
| Mean commute1 | 20 min | 18% below | |
| Works from home1 | 10.2% | 18% below | |
| Commutes by transit1County figure | 0.7% | 20% below |
Who lives here
Born abroad is 19.6%, 122% above the median place.
More about who lives here, against the typical place
All 8 people measures
Life in Kailua
5 National Park Service sites lie within 60 miles, more than in 79% of the 2,301 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-highest of 55 Hawaii places we track.
7 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, one of them a National Historic Landmark.
- Kaneohe Naval Air Station listed 1987Landmark
- Pahukini Heiau listed 1972
- Ulu Po Heiau listed 1972
- Kukuipilau Heiau listed 1984
- Kaneohe Ranch Building listed 1987
- Boettcher Estate listed 2002
Out the door, against the typical place
Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
National Park Service sites nearby
- Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park 3 miles
- Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park 16 miles
- Puʻukoholā Heiau National Historic Site 28 miles
Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)
Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.
All 18 schools and local life measures
| Measure | Kailua | Among 6,645 places | Vs median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public schools11 | 13 | 44% above | |
| Public school students11 | 5,875 | 20% above | |
| Students per teacher11 | 13.8 | 10% below | |
| Restaurants and bars per 10k7County figure | 22.5 | 8% above | |
| Shops per 10k7County figure | 31.2 | 3% above | |
| Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7County figure | 4.2 | 2% above | |
| Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k7County figure | 17.3 | 14% below | |
| Child care centers per 10k7County figure | 2.0 | 13% below | |
| Parks per 10k8 | 6.0 | 41% below | |
| Playgrounds per 10k8 | 1.4 | 85% below | |
| Grocery stores per 10k8 | 3.2 | 51% above | |
| Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k8 | 42.2 | 278% above | |
| Libraries per 10k8 | 1.8 | 110% above | |
| Named paths and bike trails8 | 4.3 | 115% above | |
| Transit stops per sq mi8 | 0.4 | 105% above | |
| Nearest National Park Service site9 | 3.1 | 90% below | |
| National Park Service sites within 60 miles9 | 5 | 150% above | |
| National Register listings10 | 7 | 46% below |
Safety, weather and risk
Heat wave risk is 0.0, below the median place (median 90.1).
No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Kailua. Larger places are fetched first.
All 7 weather and risk measures
| Measure | Kailua | Among 6,645 places | Vs median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural hazard risk12County figure | 98.5 | 7% above | |
| Hurricane risk12County figure | 68.3 | 3% below | |
| Tornado risk12County figure | 7.4 | 91% below | |
| Wildfire risk12County figure | 98.3 | 61% above | |
| Heat wave risk12County figure | 0.0 | below (median 90.1) | |
| Median air quality index13County figure | 32 | 26% below | |
| Good air days13County figure | 86.0% | 26% above |
How it is changing
Five-year survey estimates, one point per release. Between the 2019 and 2024 releases, which share no survey years, the median rent went from 20.1% to 23.9% of the median income.
Median gross rent
Median household income
Median home value
Citytistics measures
Measures only Citytistics publishes, built from the figures on this page. Scores of 100 beat every place we track. Formulas
Kailua in 2030: where the trends point
If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 24% of the median income in 2030, up from 24% now.
Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases. On projected 2030 affordability, Kailua does better than 14% of places. Its projected home value growth beats 43%.
| Measure | Latest | 2030 projection | Likely range | Avg. per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,754/mo (2024) | $2,270/mo | $1,860 to $2,760/mo | +4.4% |
| Median household income | $88,211 (2024) | $111,500 | $94,000 to $131,500 | +4.0% |
| Median home value | $667,400 (2024) | $953,000 | $692,000 to $1,312,000 | +6.1% |
The median home would be worth 8.6 years of the median income in 2030, against 7.6 now.
A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.
Places like Kailua
The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.
| Place | Rent | Income | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burien, WA | $1,782 | $91,318 | Compare |
| Snohomish, WA | $1,654 | $87,250 | Compare |
| Bermuda Dunes, CA | $1,693 | $90,818 | Compare |
| Atascadero, CA | $1,854 | $91,429 | Compare |
Nearby
- Kahaluu-Keauhou, HI6 mi
- Kaiminani, HI8 mi
- Waikoloa Village, HI24 mi
- Waimea, HI35 mi
- Hilo, HI60 mi
- Hawaiian Paradise Park, HI67 mi
Compare Kailua with
More in this area
Places built like Kailua
Its statistical peers: the closest matches on size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, origin and remote work, in the same part of the country. Cost and outcomes are left out of the match, so the table shows how Kailua performs against places like it.
Common questions
Is Kailua a good place to live?
It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Its Citytistics Index is 55 out of 100, better than 55% of the places we rate and 10th of 55 in Hawaii. 39% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 85% of the 2,222 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-lowest of 54 Hawaii places we track. OpenStreetMap shows 1.8 libraries per 10,000 residents, more than in 81% of the 2,301 places of 10,000 to 25,000 people we track. On cost, space and class size it scores 38 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.
Is Kailua expensive to live in?
The median rent takes 23.9% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $667,400.
What salary do you need to live in Kailua?
To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $70,160 a year. Work it out from your current city.
What places are similar to Kailua?
On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Burien, WA, Snohomish, WA, Bermuda Dunes, CA and Atascadero, CA.
Sources and methods
The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.
- American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
- Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
- Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
- House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
- Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
- SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
- County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
- OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
- National Park Service sites · Wikidata (CC0), units operated by the National Park Service · Retrieved 2026-11
- National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
- Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
- National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
- Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files
Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).
What stands out compares Kailua with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Kailua itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/kailua-hawaii
Citytistics. “Kailua, Hawaii.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/kailua-hawaii/
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.