Starr 970520-0313 Pandanus tectorius, 1997
Wailea’s story
Wailea in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1997.
Explore the history →WaileaHI
A regional job hub with 5,995 jobs. Some 6,352 people live in this town, in Hawaii.
Population
6,352
Census survey, 2020–24
Median home value
$1.53M
Census ACS
Household income
$90K
median
Median age
58.1
years
Jobs based here
5,995
A job hub
Is Wailea a good place to live?
Wailea’s best subject grade is an A− for health; its weakest is a D− for cost of living. 40% of residents are 65 or older in Wailea, against 20% in Hawaii’s towns and 18% across U.S. towns. On cost of living, just 9 of Hawaii’s 125 towns do worse. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 85% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. 1.7% of the land in Wailea is conserved, where Hawaii’s towns sit at 12% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Wailea has no overall grade: it has no figures for safety and schools, and an overall grade needs at least three of the four big subjects (cost of living, safety, schools and health).
What makes Wailea stand out
Where Wailea beats most towns.
Jobs vs. working residents
Jobs here5,995
Residents who work2,698
Work
A regional job hub: more jobs per worker than 95% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023.
32 measures vs. Hawaii
10 better16 too close to call6 worse
| Widest gap | Wailea | HI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 12% | 17.3% |
HealthA−
Healthier than 81% of U.S. towns
Less healthyHealthier
CDC PLACES 2025 estimates.
A job hub
Every workday, about 5,445 people come to Wailea for work
Where Wailea’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
5,995jobs based in Wailea
20%of working residents work in town
14 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Wailea grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Hawaii), ordered by how far Wailea is from typical.
Wailea has no overall grade: it has no figures for safety and schools, and an overall grade needs at least three of the four big subjects (cost of living, safety, schools and health).
Cost of livingTypical home $1.53M, 15.8 years of the Kahului metro’s $97K median household incomeD−Open →Hazard riskInland flooding tops the listDOpen →HealthKula Hospital 5.2 miles awayA−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 6.1 of 20; 2.1% of households have no car; 0.2% of workers walk, bike or ride transitC−Open →Jobs & income$90K median household incomeCOpen →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors3 miles of trails; 2% conserved landB−Open →HistoryNear the bottom of the towns comparedDOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
Moving to Wailea: who provides what
Wailea is unincorporated, so Maui County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerMaui Electric Co Ltd42.0¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterWailuku water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet3 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesMaui CountyMaui County provides services here
Register to voteOnlineIn Hawaii you can register online up to and including Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 10 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereMaui County ClerkMaui County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2025
ZIP code9675396753 100%Census 2020
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 Wailea.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C
With 2.2 jobs for every working resident, Wailea draws in 5,445 commuters
For half of commuters, work is under 14 miles away. Wailea’s average trip to work comes in at 18 minutes. About one worker in five stays in Wailea for work. The top destinations are Urban Honolulu (19%), Kihei (11%) and Kahului (9%).
20%work in town
| Wailea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $90,000 | $100,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Wailea20%
Urban Honolulu19%
Kihei11%
Kahului9%
Wailuku5%
14 mi
median commute distance
5,995
jobs based in Wailea
A job hub
jobs vs. working residents
C−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthA−
Wailea stands out in Hawaii and nationally: a smaller share of its adults feel lonely
78% of adults had a checkup this year in Wailea. Only 8 of the 93 Hawaii towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Wailea. CDC measures, 32 in all: Wailea beats Hawaii on 10 and trails on 6. Among adults locally, 13% report frequent mental distress and 37% sleep under 7 hours.
81%healthier than U.S. townsA−Health Grade
| Wailea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 32% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 45% | 36% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 17% | 23% |
32 measures vs. Hawaii
10 better16 too close to call6 worse
| What stands out | Wailea | HI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 12% | 17.3% |
| Fewer adults lacking emotional support | 21.6% | 30.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.2% | 6.7% |
Kula Hospital
5.2 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
65th
percentile among HI towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D
The biggest natural risk in Wailea is inland flooding, at a very high overall level
Of the losses FEMA expects in Wailea, 60% come from inland flooding and 24% from earthquakes. The national flood insurance program has paid one claim in the town since 1982. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Wailea once, in 2023.
85risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingEarthquakesTsunamis
1
paid flood claims since 1982
1
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
In Wailea, expect mild winters and pleasant summers
July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 64° and snow is almost unheard of.
87°summer high
Typical low → high °F
Winter64–80°
Spring65–83°
Summer69–87°
Fall68–85°
87°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
OutdoorsB−
For the outdoors, Wailea earns a B−
Wailea’s trail density is 0.2 miles per square mile. In 10 parks and preserves, walkers have 2.6 miles of trail. Parks and preserves locally: 10, covering 31 acres.
1.7%conserved
1.7%
conserved · 116 of 6,863 acres
2.6 mi
of trails · 0.2 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kamaole Park III | 0.3 mi | 9 |
| 2. Keawakapu I Beach Park | — | 6 |
| 3. Po'olenalena Beach Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
HousingCost of living grade D−
A home in Wailea sells for about $1.2M at the median
The median rent for Wailea comes to $2,554 a month. Homes sold in Wailea spent a median 116 days on the market. Sellers in Wailea got 93.6% of the asking price, typically.
$1.2Mmedian sale price
| Wailea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,554 a month | $2,009 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 70% | 71% | 73% |
Market temperature
116
days on market
93.6%
sale-to-list price
20
homes sold in September
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Nearby attractions
All 14 attractions →Haleakala National Park and 10 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Wailea. Close and well known come first.
12 mi National ParkHaleakala National Park854K visitors a year
9 mi Zoo & aquariumMaui Ocean Center
13 mi MuseumAlexander & Baldwin Sugar Museum
27 mi GardenKahanu Garden
8 mi GardenKula Botanical Garden
15 mi GardenMaui Nui Botanical GardensSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Haleakala National Park: Michael Oswald, Public domain · Maui Ocean Center: Richard N Horne, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Alexander & Baldwin Sugar Museum: Joel Bradshaw, Public domain · Kahanu Garden: dronepicr, CC BY 2.0 · Kula Botanical Garden: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us · Maui Nui Botanical Gardens: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us
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Keep exploring
Everything we know about Wailea
16pages on Wailea
The big questions
Out and about
The story
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Wailea
About 2 of every 100 Wailea residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Hawaii.
About Wailea
Census-designated place in Hawaii, United States
Wailea is a census-designated place (CDP) in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 6,027. Prior to 2010, the area was part of the Wailea-Makena census-designated place. The community was developed in 1971 by a partnership of Alexander & Baldwin and Northwestern Mutual.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 11 sq mi
- Elevation
- 157 ft
- Area code
- 808
Wailea’s neighbors
2 towns share a border with Wailea.
MakenaKiheiWailea
How the neighbors grade
Wailea and Kihei report no FBI crime data of their own. Wailea, Makena and Kihei aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Wailea with a neighbor →
Questions about Wailea
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Wailea, HI a good place to live?
Wailea has no overall grade: it has no figures for safety and schools, and an overall grade needs at least three of the four big subjects (cost of living, safety, schools and health). Some 6,352 people live in this town, in Hawaii.
Is Wailea, HI expensive?
Yes. The typical home is worth about $1,535,000, 84% above the Hawaii typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D−.