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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Remote workers have a superpower: location independence. That's about what we'd expect given the state context. Which Hawaii city let you keep the most of that salary? We scored 1 cities on cost of living, utility infrastructure, and income potential. Honolulu leads at cost index 149 — worth pausing…
#1 Ranked: Honolulu — cost index 149, rent $2,548/mo, income $85,428
Remote-worker scoring: cost index 149, utilities index 115, income $85,428 — maximizing geographic arbitrage
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
Remote workers have a superpower: location independence. That's about what we'd expect given the state context. Which Hawaii city let you keep the most of that salary? We scored 1 cities on cost of living, utility infrastructure, and income potential. Honolulu leads at cost index 149 — worth pausing on — with a utilities index of 115 (that's pre-tax, of course).
The #1 spot goes to Honolulu, and the breakdown explains why. Renters here pay $2,548/month — for better or worse — — costing renters $7,836 more per year compared to the national average. Meanwhile, Healthcare is the standout at index 110, keeping costs manageable. The weak spot? Housing at 149. The 36% rent-to-income ratio is a pressure point — for median earners, housing takes more than recommended.
(Tangentially — this is the kind of city where you can actually build equity on a median salary, which is increasingly rare.)
Put differently: The 1 cities we track in Hawaii paint a premium but nuanced picture. Average cost index: 149. Median rent: $2,548/month. Household income: $85,428. Hawaii is known for the most isolated and expensive housing market in the US — and the data backs that reputation with some caveats.
What to do with this data: use the ranking as a shortlist, then dig into the city profiles for trend lines and category breakdowns. The difference between #1 and #5 is often smaller than the difference between "good on paper" and "actually fits my life." Compare your top picks with our calculator to see real take-home numbers.
341,778 residents · Hawaii
Honolulu earns its position at #1 through a combination that's hard to replicate. The 149 cost index sits 38 points above the national baseline, and the $85,428 median income means purchasing power here is partially offset by higher costs. Homes list at $758,507 — $291,137 above the national median, reflecting the local market dynamics. It's fine. Not great, not bad. On the cost side, Healthcare leads the way at 110, while Housing trails at 149.
Honolulu ranks #1 in Hawaii for this analysis with a cost index of 149 and median income of $85,428.
Honolulu scores highest for remote workers due to its strong income potential, median rent of $2,548/mo, and above-average median income of $85,428.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Honolulu is $2,548/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $653 above the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Honolulu is $758,507, which is 8.9× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
Hawaii has a 11% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 4.44%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.27%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.