Hawaii County, Hawaii

Hawaiʻi County is a county in Hawaii, United States, coextensive with the Island of Hawaiʻi — the largest and southeasternmost island in the archipelago. It had a population of 200,629 at the 2020 census and covers 4,028.02 square miles (10,432.5 km2) of land, centred near 19°35′N 155°30′W.

Hilo is the county seat, and its postal code is 96720. Hawaiʻi County has no incorporated cities or towns — all municipal government in the state operates at the county level — but the U.S. Census Bureau recognises more than 50 census-designated places (CDPs) plus dozens of smaller unincorporated communities and subdivisions across the island. The county runs on Hawaii–Aleutian Standard Time (UTC−10, no daylight saving), and its FIPS code is 15001.

Towns & Villages in Hawaiʻi County

The table below lists census-designated places and unincorporated communities carried over from the island’s settlement record. Hilo, the seat, and Kailua (commonly called Kailua-Kona) are the two largest population centres; most other entries are small resort subdivisions, plantation-era villages, or rural hamlets. Population figures are shown only where a verified 2020 census count is available for that specific place; most CDPs on the Big Island are not separately tabulated in general references, so those cells read —.

A few name pairs on the island are easy to confuse: Honaunau and Napoopoo merged into the single CDP Honaunau-Napoopoo, so the standalone forms in older records refer to the same place; Kahaluu village was absorbed into the combined Kahaluu-Keauhou CDP; and Pepeekeo Mill and Punaluu Kahawai are historical plantation-camp names for the modern Pepeekeo and Punaluu communities.

ZIP Codes

• 96720 — Hilo (also serves Keaukaha, Waiakea, Piihonua)
• 96740 — Kailua-Kona (also serves Kaiminani, Kuakini Heights, Kealakehe)
• 96704 — Captain Cook
• 96725 — Holualoa
• 96726 — Honaunau
• 96727 — Honokaa
• 96728 — Honomu
• 96737 — Ocean View (Hawaiian Ocean View)
• 96743 — Waimea (Kamuela)
• 96749 — Keaau
• 96750 — Kealakekua
• 96755 — Kapaau
• 96760 — Kurtistown
• 96764 — Laupahoehoe
• 96771 — Mountain View
• 96772 — Naalehu
• 96777 — Pahala
• 96778 — Pahoa
• 96781 — Papaikou
• 96785 — Volcano
• 96719 — Hawi

Most of the smaller resort subdivisions and rural hamlets listed above share a ZIP with their nearest post office town rather than having their own code.

Geography

Hawaiʻi County is coextensive with the Island of Hawaiʻi and is the largest county in the state by land area, covering 62.7 percent of Hawaii’s total land. The island is built from five volcanoes — Kohala, Mauna Kea, Hualalai, Mauna Loa, and the active Kilauea — and its terrain ranges from tropical rainforest in Hilo and Puna to alpine desert on Mauna Kea’s summit above 13,000 feet and barren lava fields in Kaʻu. Traditionally the island was divided into six moku (districts): Hilo, Hamakua, Kohala, Kona, Kaʻu, and Puna, and these historic district names are still used informally to describe the island’s regions.

Because the county is a single island, it has no land border with any other county. Maui County lies across the Alenuihaha Channel to the northwest, and Kalawao and Honolulu Counties lie further north across open ocean — none of them adjoin Hawaiʻi County by land, and no other county page on this site borders it directly.

Demographics

Hawaiʻi County had 200,629 residents at the 2020 census, a density of roughly 50 people per square mile of land — low by U.S. standards, reflecting the large area given over to lava fields, forest reserve, and national park land. Hilo, on the wetter windward side, and Kailua (Kailua-Kona), on the drier leeward Kona coast, are the two largest population centres on the island, with Kailua-Kona’s district growing fastest in recent decades on tourism and resort development. County-level median household income was not independently verified for this profile; the statewide 2023 ACS median household income for Hawaii is $95,322, and incomes on the Big Island are generally understood to trail those on Oahu.

Economy & Local Life

Government is the largest employer on the island: Hawaii’s state government, Hawaiʻi County government, and Kamehameha Schools together account for tens of thousands of jobs. Tourism centres on the Kona-Kohala resort coast (Waikoloa, Kaupulehu, and the string of hotels along Alii Drive), while agriculture remains significant inland — Kona coffee farms above Holualoa and Captain Cook, macadamia orchards around Keaau and Honokaa, and diversified tropical fruit and flower growers in Puna and Hamakua. The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College anchor Hilo’s east-side economy, and the Merrie Monarch Festival, held in Hilo every spring, is the island’s best-known annual event, drawing hula halau from across the state and beyond.

History

Hawaiʻi County was organized in 1905 under the Territory of Hawaii, several years after the 1898 U.S. annexation of the islands. It takes its name directly from the island itself, in Hawaiian Ka Moku o Hawaiʻi (“the island of Hawaiʻi”), and the county’s own Hawaiian name is Kalana o Hawaiʻi. The island’s modern history has been shaped repeatedly by volcanic activity: a 1960 tsunami, generated by a Chile earthquake, devastated downtown Hilo’s waterfront, and the 2018 lower Puna eruption of Kilauea destroyed the Kapoho and Vacationland subdivisions and added roughly 875 acres of new coastal land. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, established in 1916, sits within the county’s Kaʻu and Puna districts and remains one of the state’s most-visited attractions.

Getting There

The Hawaii Belt Road (state Routes 11, 19, and 190) rings the island, connecting Hilo and Kailua-Kona; the Daniel K. Inouye Highway (Saddle Road, Route 200) cuts across the island’s interior between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. Hilo International Airport (ITO) and Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keahole (KOA) both offer direct flights to and from Honolulu and several U.S. mainland gateways.

• Kailua-Kona — about 75 miles west of Hilo via the Hawaii Belt Road
• Waimea — about 54 miles northwest of Hilo
• Volcano — about 30 miles southwest of Hilo, at the edge of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
• Naalehu — about 64 miles south of Hilo, the southernmost town in the United States

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Hawaiʻi County?
It is coextensive with the Island of Hawaiʻi, the southeasternmost and largest of the main Hawaiian Islands, in the central Pacific Ocean.

What is the population of Hawaiʻi County?
200,629 at the 2020 census.

How big is Hawaiʻi County?
4,028.02 square miles (10,432.5 km2) of land — the largest county by area anywhere in Hawaii.

What is the county seat of Hawaiʻi County?
Hilo, on the island’s windward (east) side.

How many towns and villages are in Hawaiʻi County?
The county has no incorporated cities or towns; more than 50 census-designated places plus dozens of smaller unincorporated communities are recognised across the island.

What ZIP codes are in Hawaiʻi County?
Major ZIPs include 96720 (Hilo), 96740 (Kailua-Kona), 96743 (Waimea), 96778 (Pahoa), and 96785 (Volcano), among others listed above.

Is Kilauea volcano in Hawaiʻi County?
Yes. Kilauea sits within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, in the county’s Kaʻu and Puna districts, and has erupted repeatedly in recent decades, most notably in 2018.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Hawaii.