KeaauHI
A town of 1,436, settled in 1938.
Is Keaau a good place to live?
The best of Keaau’s subject grades is an A for cost of living; the weakest is a D− for hazard risk. Only 3 of Hawaii’s 125 towns score higher on cost of living. Keaau’s trail density is 1.6 miles per square mile, above both Hawaii’s towns (0.6) and U.S. towns (0.4). The biggest park or preserve is Shipman Park, at 23 acres. Keaau has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Keaau stand out
Where Keaau beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Jobs vs. working residents
Typical home value
Keaau has shrunk 47% from 2010 to 2020
2,253 counted in 2010 and 1,195 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Keaau grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Hawaii), ordered by how far Keaau is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Mauna Kea and 15 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Keaau. Close and well known come first.
Big draw31 mi MountainMauna Kea
Big draw21 mi MountainKīlauea
Big draw37 mi MountainMauna Loa
16 mi National ParkHawai'i Volcanoes National Park1.9M visitors a year
8 mi WaterfallRainbow Falls
7 mi CaveKazumura CavePhoto credits
Mauna Kea: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Kīlauea: Hawaii Land Cover Analysis project, NOAA Coastal Services Center, Public domain · Mauna Loa: Gordon Joly, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park: Jos-uit-boston at Dutch Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Rainbow Falls: Kyle Hawton, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Kazumura Cave: Dave Bunnell / Under Earth Images, CC BY-SA 4.0
Moving to Keaau: who provides what
Keaau is unincorporated, so Hawaii County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Keaau.
With 20.0 jobs for every working resident, Keaau draws in 2,115 commuters
Most working residents leave Keaau for work: only 6% work in town. Since 2013, Keaau has added 375 jobs, to 2,121 in 2023. Keaau’s average trip to work is 30 minutes, above both the Hawaii town median (28 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes).
| Keaau | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 9.7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $85,000 | $100,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.7% | 3.7% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The schools Keaau’s kids attend
Its public schools are run by the Hawaii Department of Education school district. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Keaau High School, with 1,041 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keaau Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 829 | C− |
| Keaau High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,041 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts
Keaau faces a very high natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 100% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Keaau since 2018.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Compared with most of Hawaii and the rest of the country, the median rent in Keaau is lower
Keaau’s median rent is $827 a month. The typical Keaau home is worth about $474,000, up 2.9% in a year, 43% below the Hawaii typical home. 61% of Keaau households own their home.
| Keaau | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $827 a month | $2,015 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 61% | 71% | 73% |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Mild winters and pleasant summers in Keaau
Keaau has warm winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Keaau is 79°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
A smaller share of adults in Keaau binge drink than in the typical Hawaii or U.S. town
14% of adults binge drink in Keaau. Keaau beats the Hawaii average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 13. 39% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Keaau.
| Keaau | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 27% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 19% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 17% | 23% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 12% | 12% |
| What stands out | Keaau | HI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.3% | 8.5% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 14.1% | 17.4% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 22.5% | 17.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keaau has set aside 1.4% of its land for conservation
9.9 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. Only 7 of the 86 Hawaii towns we compare have a lower share of conserved land than Keaau.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Shipman Park | — | 23 |
| 2. Panaʻewa Forest Reserve | — | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Keaau
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Keaau
About 6 of every 100 Keaau residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Hawaii.
1,436 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Questions about Keaau
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Keaau, HI expensive?
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A.