Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Today 9,286 people live in this town, first settled in 1900.
The best of Waimea’s subject grades is an A− for health; the weakest is a D− for hazard risk. Waimea’s January low is 68°F, above both the Hawaii town median (64°F) and the median of U.S. towns (22°F). The typical home is worth about $1.0 million, 13.1 years of the Hilo area’s $79K median household income. 16% of the land in Waimea is conserved, above both the Hawaii town median (12%) and the median of U.S. towns (4.3%). The biggest place to walk is Kohala Forest Reserve, 1,809 acres with 1.3 miles of trail. Waimea 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).
Where Waimea beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| Widest gap | Waimea | HI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.4% | 8.5% |
Where Waimea’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Hawaii), ordered by how far Waimea is from typical.
Waimea 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).
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 7,028 in 2000, 9,904 in 2020. The archive holds 13 old photos and papers going back to 1993 and 4 maps from 1916 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Waimea 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.
Ordered by what stands out in Waimea.
Most working residents leave Waimea for work: only 18% work in town. Since 2013, Waimea has added 220 jobs, to 2,787 in 2023. Half the trips to work are shorter than 44 miles. The top destinations are Urban Honolulu (25%), Hilo (7%) and Waikoloa Beach Resort (6%).
| Waimea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 18% | 3.6% | 8% |
| Median household income | $100,000 | $100,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Two of its 7 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. The Hawaii Department of Education school district runs its public schools. Also worth knowing: the largest public high school is Kanu o ka Aina - New Century PCS, with 696 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waimea Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 474 | C− |
| Kanu o ka Aina - New Century PCSLargest public high schoolGrades K–12 | Grades K–12 | 696 | B |
NCES · EDFacts
For Waimea, the risk rating from FEMA is 100 of 100. Of the losses FEMA expects locally, 61% come from inland flooding and 24% from earthquakes. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Waimea once, in 2006.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Waimea: just over one in ten adults have diabetes. Only 8 of the 93 Hawaii towns we compare have a lower share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Waimea.
| Waimea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 31% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 19% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 45% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 22% | 25% |
| What stands out | Waimea | HI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.4% | 8.5% |
| Fewer adults who get no exercise | 18.6% | 23% |
| More adults with depression | 20.2% | 16% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The rent at the middle of the market in Waimea is $1,867 a month. The typical Waimea home is worth about $1,031,000, up 3.7% in a year, 24% above the Hawaii typical home.
| Waimea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,867 a month | $2,017 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 71% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Trails run 16 miles in 5 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Waimea: 5, covering 1,882 acres. The concentration of trails for Waimea comes to 0.4 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kohala Forest Reserve | 1.3 mi | 1,809 |
| 2. Waimea Nature Park (Ulu La'au) | 0.6 mi | 12 |
| 3. Waimea District Park | — | 41 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Four-year graduates: 42% of adults 25 and older here, 36% across Hawaii. Adults 18 to 34 are 15% of residents (21% statewide). The share of residents in Waimea who are 65 or older: 24%.
| Waimea | Hawaii towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 24% | 20% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 42% | 31% | 29% |
| Median age | 42.5 years | 41.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 23% | 22% | 22% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.8 points. Across Hawaii, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Waimea | HI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.6% | 11.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.2% | 9.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.4% | 8.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11% | 13.3% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.1% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.2% | 11.8% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.1% | 12.4% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.7% | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.6% | 9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7% | 6.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.1% | 26.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 15% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.3% | 10.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 21% | 22.8% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 20.6% | 13.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Waimea. Close and well known come first.
Big draw17 mi MountainMauna Kea
Big draw36 mi MountainMauna Loa
33 mi National ParkHawai'i Volcanoes National Park1.9M visitors a year
27 mi MountainHualālai
13 mi National Historic SitePu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site22K visitors a year
32 mi State parkAkaka Falls State ParkMauna Kea: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · 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 · Hualālai: Photograph by J. Kauahikaua., Public domain · Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site: Bamse, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Akaka Falls State Park: Robert Linsdell from St. Andrews, Canada, CC BY 2.0
None within 15 miles of Waimea; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Waimea residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Hawaii.
3 places in Waimea on the National Register of Historic Places.
11 notable people were born in Waimea.
Census-designated place in Hawaii, U.S.
Waimea is a landlocked community in Hawaiʻi County, Hawaii, United States. Waimea is the center for ranching activities and paniolo culture. The name Waimea means reddish water. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined that community as a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 7,028 at the 2000 census and 9,212 at the 2010 census. Since each U.S. state cannot have more than one post office of the same name, and there is a post office in Waimea, Kauai County, the official U.S. Post Office designation for Waimea is Kamuela, although this name is only used by the post office, not by locals nor road signage. The Parker Ranch in and around Waimea is the la…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Waimea 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).
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
11 notable people were born here, including S. Neil Fujita and Curtis P. Iaukea.
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