County outline
Where Maui County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 48.4% of Maui County’s measured area and water for 51.6%. Its combined area converts to 6,211.6 square kilometers or approximately 1,534,931 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 1,161.54 | 3,008.375 | 743,385.6 |
| Water | 1,236.789 | 3,203.269 | 791,545 |
| Total | 2,398.329 | 6,211.644 | 1,534,930.6 |
How Maui County compares
By original Census land area, Maui County ranks #2 of 5 in Hawaii and #532 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 1.874 times the Hawaii county-equivalent median of 619.8 square miles. It accounts for 18.1% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Hawaii ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Maui County
The Census Bureau estimates that 160,592 people lived in Maui County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #438 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #3 of 5 in Hawaii. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 164,756, the population has declined by 4,164 (−2.5%), compared with −1.5% for Hawaii as a whole.
With 1,161.5 square miles of land, that is 138 people per square mile (53 per km²), placing Maui County #813 nationally for density and #2 in Hawaii. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Hawaii median is 118. Put another way, there are about 4.6 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 164,762 | 164,806 | 164,195 | 164,022 | 162,238 | 160,592 |
| Change | — | +44 | −611 | −173 | −1,784 | −1,646 |
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates. Estimates are revised each year and are not decennial census counts. Density divides the whole population by the whole county’s land area, so it describes an average, not how settlement is distributed within the county. Population sources and methods.
Cities and towns in Maui County
Hawaii has no incorporated cities or towns: its counties provide local government directly. Maui County’s communities are census-designated places, statistical areas the Census Bureau defines for data purposes.
Metropolitan area
Maui County is a central county of the Kahului-Wailuku, HI Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its 2 county equivalents have 160,674 residents on 1,173.5 square miles of land; Maui County accounts for 99% of the land and 99.9% of the residents. By combined land it ranks #263 of 393 metropolitan areas, and #275 by population.
| County equivalent | Population 2025 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|
| Maui County | 160,592 | 1,161.5 |
| Kalawao County | 82 | 12 |
ZIP codes
14 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Maui County, and each lies mostly inside the county.
9670896713967299673296748967539675796761967639676896770967799679096793
ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are the Census Bureau’s approximations of USPS ZIP Code service areas, from the 2020 Census relationship files. Post-office-box and single-address ZIP Codes have no tabulation area.
Counties bordering Maui County
Maui County shares a land border with 1 county equivalent. It has 96.9 times the land area of Kalawao County.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Maui | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kalawao County | 12 | 96.9× smaller | Compare |
How big is Maui County compared with U.S. states?
Maui County has more land than 1 of the 50 states. It is about 1.1 times the land area of Rhode Island (1,033.9 mi²), while Delaware, the next larger state, has 1.7 times as much land (1,948.6 mi²). Hawaii’s county land could hold about 5.5 areas the size of Maui County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 34.1 miles (54.8 km) on each side. Real county shapes are rarely square, so this is a scale reference rather than a width or driving distance.
State figures are the sums of each state’s county-equivalent land measurements in the same Census release, so states and counties are compared on the same basis. Published state totals can differ slightly because of rounding. Compare all states · Counties bigger than entire states.
What stands out about Maui County?
Maui County has more land than 2,690 of the other 3,221 county equivalents in the dataset.
A median is the middle county-equivalent measurement, not the average of the largest and smallest. All three bars use the same linear scale. Very small areas may appear as a thin sliver; the labels retain their values.
Does including water change its rank?
Using land plus water places Maui County at #247 nationally by total area, 285 places closer to the top than its land rank. The water assigned to this geography moves it ahead of some county equivalents with more land.
Its water share is 51.6%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 50.4 percentage points higher. This describes the statistical geography’s land/water mix, not flood exposure or developable land.
Closest positions in the national land ranking
These entries sit immediately beside Maui County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #531 | Bernalillo County, New Mexico | 1,161.7 | Compare |
| #532 | Maui County, Hawaii | 1,161.5 | This county |
| #533 | Liberty County, Texas | 1,158.5 | Compare |
Calculated from the same Census release as the area table. Total-area order uses original ALAND + AWATER; water shares and chart labels use published square miles. Calculation details.
Representative coordinates
The Census internal point is 20.855931, -156.601550. It represents a location inside the geography; it is not necessarily the centroid or the address of a courthouse.
Source and precision
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 Gazetteer Files, Counties. Original ALAND: 3,008,374,249 m²; AWATER: 3,203,268,695 m². Rankings use ALAND; exact ties use ascending GEOID. Tables preserve Census-published square miles to three decimals, with conversions based on those values.
Common questions
How big is Maui County?
Maui County, Hawaii has 1,161.5 square miles (3,008.4 km²) of land and 1,236.8 square miles of water, for a total area of 2,398.3 square miles. It ranks #532 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Maui County the largest county in Hawaii?
No. Maui County ranks #2 of 5 in Hawaii by land area. The largest is Hawaii County, with 4,028.4 square miles of land.
What counties border Maui County?
Maui County shares a land border with Kalawao County.
What is the population of Maui County?
The Census Bureau estimates Maui County had 160,592 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #438 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 138 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Maui County?
The county seat of Maui County is Wailuku.
Is Maui County part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the Kahului-Wailuku, HI Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has 2 county equivalents and 160,674 residents.
How many ZIP codes are in Maui County?
14 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Maui County, and 14 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Maui County compare with U.S. states?
It has more land than 1 of the 50 states, including Rhode Island (1,033.9 square miles of land).
How many acres of land are in Maui County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 743,386 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 1,534,931 acres. One square mile equals 640 acres.
Why might another source show a different area?
Check whether it reports land or total area, its Census vintage, and its rounding. Our guide explains how to reconcile county area figures.
Can this establish a property boundary?
No. Statistical measurements and generalized maps do not establish property lines. Consult the relevant local surveying or land-records authority.