Public school, 1900
Kivalina’s story
106 years in pictures
Census counts: 87 in 1920, 444 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1900 and 2 maps from 1951 on.
- 1920Kivalina is settled
KivalinaAK
With 399 residents, this town was settled in 1920.
Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/shorezone/ · CC BY 2.0
Population
399
2025 Census estimate · −10.1% since 2020
Median home value
$175K
Census ACS
Household income
$73K
median
Median age
21.9
years
Land area
4 sq mi
Is Kivalina a good place to live?
Kivalina’s typical journey to work is 5 minutes, below both the Alaska town median (21 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). No town among the 42 in Alaska we compare has a lower share of adults with a bachelor’s degree than Kivalina. Kivalina has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Small town
399 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Kivalina: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Kivalina, and how to reach them.
PowerAlaska Village Elec Coop65.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterKivalina Water System20 health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet1 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Kivalina’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Alaska you can register online until 30 days before Election Day, in person until 30 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 30 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereAbsentee and Petition OfficeState of Alaska; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2025
ZIP code9975099750 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Kivalina.
Schools
The schools Kivalina’s kids attend
Public schools: the Northwest Arctic Borough School District. Its one school is below. 150 students attend Kivalina’s public school.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kisimgiugtuq SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 150 | D− |
NCES · EDFacts
Natural hazards
Natural hazards: very low risk in Kivalina, mostly cold waves
Kivalina’s risk rating from FEMA is 7 of 100. FEMA puts 92% of the town’s expected hazard losses down to cold waves. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Kivalina after 2 declared disasters, most recently in 2025.
7risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Cold waves
2
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
In Kivalina, a typical July afternoon runs cooler than in the typical Alaska or U.S. town
Winters in Kivalina are cold and summers cool, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 56° and January nights drop to -9°.
56°summer high
Typical low → high °F
Winter-7–9°
Spring8–24°
Summer42–54°
Fall20–31°
Sep 11
typical first frost
Jun 10
typical last frost
56°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Health
A larger share of adults smoke cigarettes in Kivalina than in most of Alaska or the rest of the country
For adults in Kivalina, the share who say their health is fair or poor is 34%. Of the 42 Alaska towns we compare, none has a higher share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Kivalina. The town beats the Alaska average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 24.
| Kivalina | Alaska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 18% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 16% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 13% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Alaska
2 better6 too close to call24 worse
| What stands out | Kivalina | AK |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.3% | 7% |
| Fewer adults with high cholesterol | 29.4% | 33.4% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 42.7% | 14.3% |
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Outdoors
0% of Kivalina is conserved land
1.4 miles of trail. Kivalina’s trail network density stands at 0.3 miles per square mile.
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 2,632 acres
1.4 mi
of trails · 0.3 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Kivalina
15pages on Kivalina
The big questions
Out and about
The story
About Kivalina
City in Alaska, United States
Kivalina (kiv-uh-LEE-nuh) (Inupiaq: Kivalliñiq) is a city and village in Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska, United States. As of the 2020 census, Kivalina had a population of 444. The island on which the village lies is threatened by rising sea levels and coastal erosion caused by climate change. As of 2013, it is predicted that the island will be inundated by 2025. In addition to well-publicized impacts of climate change, the Village of Kivalina has been a party in several environmentally related court cases.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1969
- Area
- 4.0 sq mi
- Elevation
- 13 ft
- ZIP code
- 99750
- Area code
- 907
Questions about Kivalina
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Kivalina, AK a good place to live?
Kivalina has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.