Kauai County, Hawaii

• White (non-Hispanic) 21,155 28.7%
• Hispanic or Latino (any race) 7,804 10.6%
• Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 576 0.8%
• Asian (non-Hispanic) 22,131 30.0%
• Two or more races (non-Hispanic) 14,705 19.9%
• American Indian / Alaska Native (non-Hispanic) 64 0.1%
• Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic) 6,985 9.5%
• Some other race (non-Hispanic) 311 0.4%

• Under 18 15,636 21.2%
• 18–24 4,700 6.4%
• 25–44 18,260 24.8%
• 45–64 18,605 25.2%
• 65 and over 16,530 22.4%

Median household income

$89,815

90% interval $82,242–$97,388

−$11,766 vs HI · 3rd of 5

Below poverty line

9.5%

90% interval 7.2%–11.8%

−0.5 pp vs HI · 3rd of 5

Unemployment (12-mo)

2.3%

−0.09 pp vs. state

County GDP

$5.6B

4.72% of state

Avg. annual pay

$62,998

Establishments

3,519

• Trade, transportation & utilities 6,146 18.5%
• Education & health services 5,312 16.0%
• Professional & business services 2,995 9.0%
• Public administration 421 1.3%
• Financial activities 1 0.0%

The sectors listed cover 44.7% of covered employment; BLS withholds the rest to avoid disclosing individual employers.

Home ownership

68.6%

+5.6 pp vs HI · 2nd of 5

Median gross rent

$1,870

−$101 vs HI · 3rd of 5

Owner-occupied

16,210

Renter-occupied

7,422

• Diversified

  Top three sectors employ 43% of the workforce, a relatively diversified local economy. Expect mixed employer backgrounds on the panel rather than concentration in any one institution or industry.

• Compressed wage spread

  Highest-paid sector pays only 2.2× the lowest ($120,059 vs $53,867/yr), a relatively flat local wage distribution.

• Small-business scale

  Average establishment employs only 9.5 workers, a small-business-dominated local economy. Expect more self-employed and small-business-owner panelists than in institutional-employer venues.

• Democratic 17,675 58.8%
• Republican 11,803 39.3%
• Other / third-party 586 1.9%

• Tagalog 3,326 4.8%
• Spanish 866 1.2%
• German or other West Germanic 319 0.5%
• Russian, Polish, or other Slavic 265 0.4%
• French, Haitian, or Cajun 258 0.4%
• Chinese 203 0.3%
• Vietnamese 161 0.2%
• Korean 104 0.1%
• Arabic 2 0.0%

Households

23,632

Family households

16,249

68.8% of households

Married couples w/ children

3,493

21.5% of families

Single-mother families

1,050

6.5% of families

Veterans

3,711

6.4% of civilians 18+

• Catholic 14,147 19.3%
• Other (non-Christian + minor traditions) 9,222 12.6%
• Evangelical Protestant 7,212 9.8%
• Mainline Protestant 2,501 3.4%
• Black Protestant 1,348 1.8%
• Orthodox 20 0.0%

Health insured

96.0%

±0.6 pp

Uninsured

4.0%

±0.6 pp

4th of 5

With a disability

10.7%

±0.8 pp

5th of 5

Bachelor's or higher

30.1%

±1.9 pp

−6.0 pp vs HI · 4th of 5

Uninsured, under 65 (2024)

5.0%

90% interval 4.4%–5.6% · Census SAHIE

The under-65 uninsured rate is not comparable to the ACS insurance figures, which cover all ages.

Trial court

5th Judicial Circuit Court

Judges

2 (Circuit Court judges per circuit (general civil + criminal jurisdiction per HRS § 603-21.5, civil matters above the $40,000 District Court limit and felony criminal cases); District Court judges (limited jurisdiction) separate. Vintage 2026 courts.state.hi.us per-circuit directories. The 1st Circuit (Honolulu) holds the vast majority of the ~33 statewide Circuit Court judgeships; the neighbor-island circuits each carry 2-4 judges. Note: HI's circuit numbering is 1, 2, 3, 5, there is NO 4th Circuit (the historical numbering skipped it).)

Court seats

Lihue

Traffic fatalities

8

13.77 per 100k adults (18+)

Fatal crashes

8