Waipahu, HI
Honolulu County · Hawaii · United States
Home to 72,717 people across 19.261 square miles.
At a glance
96797 by the numbers
Every figure below comes from the 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the Census Gazetteer, or is computed from those. Margins of error are shown where they matter.
Location
Where 96797 is
| Coordinates | 21.40845, -158.017646 |
|---|---|
| Time zone | Pacific/Honolulu |
| County | Honolulu County |
| State | Hawaii (HI) |
| Land area | 19.261 mi² |
| Coordinate source | Census ZCTA internal point |
Local time
Pacific/Honolulu
Current weather
Live from the National Weather Service
Loading forecast…
Distance to major cities
Straight-line, computed from coordinates
| San Francisco, CA | 2398.9 mi |
|---|---|
| Los Angeles, CA | 2565.6 mi |
| San Diego, CA | 2614.4 mi |
| Seattle, WA | 2680.4 mi |
People
Who lives in 96797
72,717 residents in 20,259 households, averaging 3.59 people per household. The largest age group is 65+ at 20.1% of residents, and 78.7% of households are families.
Age distribution
Share of residents by age band
Households
Composition and size
| Total households | 20,259 |
|---|---|
| Average household size | 3.59 |
| Family households | 78.7% |
| Living alone | 16.3% |
| Median age | 41.3 years |
| Households with internet | 91.7% |
Race & ethnicity
Census race categories. Hispanic or Latino origin is asked separately and overlaps these groups.
Income & work
What people earn in 96797
The median household here earns $110,036 a year, above the US median of $70,109, which puts 96797 ahead of 88% of American ZIP codes. 8.5% of residents live below the poverty line.
Compared to the US
This ZIP against the national median
| Median household income | $110,036 ±$4,916 |
|---|---|
| Per capita income | $38,056 |
| Poverty rate | 8.5% |
| Unemployment rate | 3.9% |
| Labor force participation | 65.1% |
Household income distribution
Share of households in each bracket
Educational attainment among residents 25 and older: 24.6% hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 89.6% finished high school.
Housing
Homes and rent in 96797
A typical home is valued at $798,600, and median rent runs $1,981 a month. This is an owner-majority area — 67.9% of occupied homes are owned, and the typical building went up in 1983.
Costs
Typical values
| Median home value | $798,600 |
|---|---|
| Median gross rent | $1,981/mo |
| Median year built | 1983 |
| Housing units | 21,327 |
| Vacancy rate | 5.0% |
Own vs. rent
Of 20,259 occupied units
| Owner households | 13,756 |
|---|---|
| Renter households | 6,503 |
Building types
Units by structure size
Getting to work
How 96797 commutes
65.5% of workers drove alone, and the average one-way trip takes 34.0 minutes.
Mode of transport
Workers 16 and older
Travel time
Mean commute 34.0 minutes
Overview
Understanding ZIP code 96797
ZIP code 96797 is assigned to Waipahu, HI, and falls within Honolulu County. Like every US postal code, it began as a mail-routing device rather than a geographic boundary — the US Postal Service groups delivery routes under a single code so carriers and sorting equipment can process mail efficiently. Today it also serves as a practical shorthand for the area itself: roughly 72,717 people live inside it.
At 3,775 residents per square mile spread over 19.261 square miles, 96797 reads as a densely built-up area. It is one of the more heavily populated postal codes in the country, and density shapes almost everything else on this page — how people get to work, whether they own or rent, and what housing costs.
Household earnings run above the national median. At $110,036, 96797 sits comfortably in the upper half, ahead of 88% of them. The US median for comparison is $70,109. Bear in mind that median income describes the midpoint household, not the average — it is not pulled upward by a handful of very high earners the way a mean would be.
Living here
What life in Waipahu looks like
Housing in 96797 costs far above the national median. A typical home is valued at $798,600 against a US median of $207,500, and median gross rent runs $1,981 a month. The split between owning and renting is fairly even at 67.9% owner-occupied, which tends to indicate a mix of housing types rather than one dominant form.
The building stock is dominated by detached single-family houses, which account for 62.0% of housing units here. The median construction year is 1983, making the housing here from the later twentieth century.
The population skews broadly in line with the national age profile, with a median age of 41.3 against 42 nationally. Households are relatively large at 3.59 people on average, with 78.7% classified as family households.
Getting to work takes 34.0 minutes on average one way. The dominant mode is drove alone at 65.5% of workers.
Where to stay
Where to stay in Waipahu, HI
Waipahu is a built-up area, so you will generally find a mix of chain hotels near the main approach roads and a smaller number of independent properties closer to the centre. Staying in 96797 itself often costs less than an equivalent room in the nearest downtown while keeping you close to it.
Median rent in 96797 is $1,981 a month, which sits in the middle of the national range; accommodation pricing locally tends to be similarly mid-market. For reference, San Francisco, CA is about 2398.9 miles away in a straight line, which is worth factoring in if you are comparing a stay here against one closer to the city centre.
Availability and pricing change constantly, so the live search below will give you a more accurate picture than any figure we could publish here. It opens results for this area on Booking.com.
Opens Booking.com in a new tab. We are not affiliated with Booking.com and receive nothing from this link.
Practical uses
What ZIP code 96797 is used for
Beyond addressing mail, 96797 does a lot of quiet administrative work. Retailers use it to calculate shipping and sales tax at checkout. Insurers use it to set premiums, since risk profiles vary geographically. Employers and marketers use it to define service areas. Government agencies use it to route benefits and organise reporting. If you have ever been asked for a postal code by a form that clearly does not intend to send you anything, this is why.
For anyone weighing a move, 96797 offers a compact profile of Waipahu: 72,717 residents, a median household income of $110,036, 24.6% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher, and an unemployment rate of 3.9%. A handful of figures like these answer more relocation questions than most neighbourhood guides do.
One caution worth repeating: a postal code is not a neighbourhood. 96797 may cover parts of several distinct areas, and a single neighbourhood in Waipahu may be split across more than one code. Boundaries also shift as USPS adjusts delivery routes. Treat the figures here as describing a delivery area, which is what they actually measure.
Nearby
ZIP codes near 96797
The eight closest postal codes by centroid distance, each with its own full profile. You can also browse every Hawaii ZIP code or use the ZIP Express Lookup to search by city, county or time zone.
More in Honolulu County
Look up another
Search any ZIP code
Questions
Common questions about 96797
What city is ZIP code 96797 in?
What is the population of 96797?
What is the average income in 96797?
How expensive is housing in 96797?
Is 96797 a good place to live?
What time zone is 96797 in?
How big is ZIP code 96797?
Is 96797 urban, suburban or rural?
How much is rent in 96797?
What is the commute like from 96797?
How many people work in 96797?
Where should I stay when visiting 96797?
Does 96797 cover more than one city or county?
Can ZIP code 96797 change?
Methodology
Where this data comes from
- Postal geography — GeoNames open postal code database (CC BY 4.0), cross-checked against the US Census Gazetteer.
- Demographics, income, housing, commute — US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, ZIP Code Tabulation Area 96797. Tables B01001, B01002, B01003, B02001, B03003, B08301, B08303, B11001, B15003, B17001, B19001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25024, B25035, B25064, B25077, B28002.
- Land and water area — US Census Bureau 2023 Gazetteer Files.
- Weather — NOAA National Weather Service, fetched live in your browser.
- Map — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).