Best Places96781, HI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 96781, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
96781 ranks 23,202nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 96781
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
96781's strengths and weaknesses
Where 96781 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 78% of zip codes
Where 96781 ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 96781
A household needs to earn about $138,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 96781 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $91,016, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 96781's effective rate of 0.30%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 96781
96781 runs older than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 96781.
Who works in 96781, and how
Work in 96781 centers on public administration and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 96781
The coast is about 3 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 96781, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 96781, month by month
96781 sees roughly 97 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 82, with lows near 64. The comfortable stretch runs November through May.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 82° | 72° | 64° |
| April | 82° | 74° | 67° |
| July | 85° | 77° | 70° |
| October | 85° | 76° | 69° |
Flying in and out of 96781
The nearest airport, Hilo International, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kahului, about 115 miles away.
The best schools in and around 96781
Schools across 96781 average a D+, better than 13% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Ernest Bowen Desilva Elementary SchoolA− · 56% proficient
- Prince Jonah Kalanianaole Elementary & Intermediate SchoolD− · 15% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hilo Intermediate SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top high schools
- Hilo High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 96781 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
96781 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 96781 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 96781
Is 96781 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 96781 ranks 23,202nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, low property taxes, and heat safety, and lowest on distance from a big city and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 96781 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $566,004. The overall cost of living runs about 34% above the national average. Set against a $91,016 median income, cost of living beats 22% of zip codes.
Is 96781 safe?
96781 is safer than 17% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $676 per resident a year.
Compare 96781 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 96781. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 96781 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
96781 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 96781: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 96781: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 96781: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 96781: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
96781 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.