Hawaii’s population shrank yet again between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, according to data released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Hawaii lost a net total of 2,132 people, bringing its total population to 1,432,820 as of July 1, 2025 — about 0.15% less than it was on July 1, 2024. During that same time period, only Vermont and Puerto Rico lost a larger percentage of their populations.
“This is yet another sign of the affordability crisis that Hawaii residents deal with every day,” said Keliʻi Akina, president and CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii. “Most of us have said goodbye to friends or family members who left Hawaii for less-expensive pastures, and I worry that more will continue to leave if our state and county lawmakers do not get serious about reducing our cost of living.”
Most of Hawaii’s population loss came from people leaving Hawaii for other U.S. states. The Census Bureau calculated that 8,876 people migrated from Hawaii to somewhere else in the United States. Hawaii did, however, see small net gains in international migration and natural population growth, which is the difference in births and deaths.
Hawaii has logged an overall population decline in five of the past six years. According to the Census Bureau, the state’s population has dwindled by almost 22,500 since 2020.
Akina added that he “hopes lawmakers take this information to heart in 2026 and avoid passing new taxes, fees and regulations that could increase the cost of living even further.”
