December, 6th 2013

At the 2010 census the population of Hawaii was declared at a total of 1,360,301. Estimates of the population are produced in the years between censuses – in 2011 the population was estimated to be 1,374,810 and in 2012 this had risen to 1,392,313.

Hawaii Population 2013

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Hawaii is the only state in the US with an Asian plurality, and one of the most densely populated. Tweet

Although no estimate has yet been released for this year, if we extrapolate those statistics, it is clear that population of Hawaii in 2013 will pass 1.4 million. Based on a growth rate of 1.12%, the population is estimated at 1,408,600.

You can read more about the population of Hawaii in this article or, for more information about the country as a whole, you can check out our article on the US Population in 2013.

Based on the 2010 census, Hawaii is now the 40th largest state in the union. Although small in terms of its absolute population, Hawaii is big in terms of one area of census statistics – population density. In total, the islands make up 10,931 square miles of land (28,311 square kilometres) but when it comes to population density, it is ranked number 13 in the US with 214 people per square mile, (82.6 per square kilometre).

Population of Hawaiian Islands

There are eight major islands in Hawaii. Oahu is the largest, with a population of 953,207.

Next largest is Hawaii itself, holding 185,079 people, followed closely by Maui (144,444). The only other island with a sizeable population is Kauai (pop 66,921). The remaining islands are Molokai (7,345), Lanai (3,135), Niihau (170) and Kahoolawe (unpopulated).

Honolulu is the largest city in Hawaii, home to 387,170 of Oahu's people. There are no other cities with more than 50,000 people – the next largest is Pearl City, which is home to 47,698 people.

Hawaii Population History

Although Hawaii only became a US state in 1959 there are population statistics dating back to the beginning of the 20^th century. In 1900, the total number of citizens living on the islands was declared at 154,001 and just ten years later that had risen by 24.6% to 191,874.

The US census of 1960 was the first to include Hawaii in its statistics and by that point, the population had grown to 632,772, a 26.6% increase from the 1950 findings. From that stage, the numbers have continued to increase but the percentage increase decade by decade has slowed down – to an extent that the 2010 figures represented a rise of just 12.3% on those declared in 2000.

Natural growth

Hawaii has a healthy gap between birth and death rates and, when figures in this respect were released in 2005, they showed a net gain of 48,111 new Hawaiians in the five years from 2000. Net migration is also a contributory factor and using those figures in 2005 once again, they showed a gain of 16,956 new citizens over and above the statistics from 2000.

Hawaii Demographics

There is a very wide range of cultures and ethnic groups within the population of Hawaii as a whole and at the 2010 census, the total of 1,360,301 was divided as follows:

• 24.7% White (22.7% Non-Hispanic White)
• 1.6% Black or African American
• 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native
• 38.6% Asian
• 10.0% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
• 1.2% from ‘Some Other race’
• 23.6% from Two or More Races

Some of these figures make Hawaii unique within America and in particular, there is a higher ratio of Asian Americans in Hawaii than anywhere else in the country.

Natural growth and immigration are likely to rise further and although the percentages aren’t exceptionally high compared with other states in the US, this is a densely populated area and as such, the Hawaii population in 2012 is worth monitoring closely until the 2020 census takes place.