How to Live in Hawaiʻi is a research-first publication for people thinking about moving to the islands. Most of our readers are on the US mainland, somewhere on the spectrum between "vaguely curious" and "boxes are packed."
We're not a travel site. We're not a luxury-real-estate blog. We write the guide a careful planner would want: practical, specific, and unhurried. Real numbers. Real timelines. No "discover paradise."
The people behind the guide
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Benjamin Reimann Editor
Benjamin edits How to Live in Hawaiʻi and sets its research standards. He isn’t a Hawaiʻi resident, so the guides lean on official sources and published data, not personal stories.
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Elizabeth Smith Founder
Elizabeth started How to Live in Hawaiʻi in 2017 and wrote its first guides.
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Jessica Travel
Jessica has visited Hawaiʻi and is an expert in travel.
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Tessa Power Contributor
Tessa wrote guides for How to Live in Hawaiʻi in 2022, from living on Maui and retiring in Hawaiʻi to Hawaiian culture and music festivals.
What you'll find here
Long, careful guides on the things that actually take work: cost of living by island, shipping a car or a household, finding a place to live before you fly in, getting a driver's license, schooling, healthcare, bringing pets, and what to expect in the first ninety days.
How we work
Our guides are built from research, not anecdote: published prices, carrier rate cards, utility tariffs, and state, county and federal data. Where a number changes often (rent, gas, electric), we re-check it regularly. Where something needs paperwork (vehicle import, pet quarantine, driver's license), we walk through it step by step and link to the official source. Affiliate links are marked. Sponsored posts are labeled.
How this site is funded
Display advertising and a small number of affiliate links, both clearly disclosed. That's how we keep the guides free.