Employment in Honolulu, Hawaii’s only large county, increased by 0.4 percent from March 2024 to March 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Chris Rosenlund, Regional Commissioner, stated that “the rate of employment growth in Honolulu ranked 167th among the 364 largest U.S. counties with published data.”
Honolulu reported an employment figure of 456,000 as of March 2025, representing about 70.7 percent of all jobs in Hawaii. In comparison, the largest counties across the United States account for approximately 73.4 percent of total covered employment.
The average weekly wage in Honolulu rose by 6.5 percent over the year to $1,412. Nationally, the average was $1,589—a year-over-year increase of 4.1 percent. Honolulu’s weekly wage ranked 144th among large U.S. counties for absolute value and was sixteenth for percentage change.
For Hawaii’s three smaller counties—those with fewer than 75,000 jobs—wage levels were lower than the national average. Kauai had the highest average weekly wage at $1,226; Maui + Kalawao followed at $1,215; and Hawaii County reported $1,183.
Additional details on state-level data are available in table 3 of this release and through resources provided by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages website.
The next County Employment and Wages report covering the second quarter of 2025 is scheduled for release on December 3, 2025.
Information can be requested in accessible formats by contacting (202) 691-5200 or using Telecommunications Relay Service at 7-1-1.
