Honolulu vs West Palm Beach
The short version
- Honolulu is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 3% lower than in the West Palm Beach area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $414,200 in West Palm Beach and $843,400 in Honolulu.
- Households earn more in Honolulu ($86,504 vs $73,446 median).
- Honolulu has the warmer winter: January highs of 81°F vs 75°F.
- West Palm Beach has more scorching days: 74 a year at 90°F or hotter vs 32.
- West Palm Beach is growing faster: +8.4% since 2020 vs -2.6%.
- Florida has no state income tax on wages; Hawaii's top rate is 11%.
Side by side
| Honolulu, HI | West Palm Beach, FL | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 341,868 | 127,189 |
| Growth since 2020 | -2.6% | +8.4% |
| People per square mile | 5,639 | 2,361 |
| Median age | 43.0 | 41.1 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 42% | 39% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $86,504 | $73,446 |
| Median home value | $843,400 | $414,200 |
| Home value to income | 9.7× | 5.6× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,823 | $1,772 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 111.0 | 114.2 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 135.5 | 155.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $83,200 | $85,600 |
| Homeowners | 49% | 51% |
| Top state income tax | 11% | None |
| Combined sales tax | 4.5% | 6.98% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 21.9 | 23.4 |
| Work from home | 10% | 13% |
| Take public transit | 7% | 2% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 4.8% | 5.1% |
| Poverty rate | 11.9% | 14.1% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 81° / 67° | 75° / 58° |
| July high / low | 88° / 75° | 90° / 76° |
| Precipitation per year | 16 in | 62 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 32 | 74 |
| Nights below freezing | 0 | 0 |
| Comfortable months | 7 | 6 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 98.8 | 99.2 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 97% | 53% |
| Home prices, past year | +11.1% | +3.7% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +38.6% | +58.7% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Honolulu: November to May. West Palm Beach: November to April.
Full monthly tables: Honolulu weather by month and West Palm Beach weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $83,200 in Honolulu and $85,600 in West Palm Beach. Moving from Honolulu to West Palm Beach, you would need about $77,200 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Honolulu and West Palm Beach
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Honolulu and West Palm Beach.
Which would you pick?
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