Kihei is a medium-sized coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Hawaii. With a population of 21,423 people and 11 associated neighborhoods, Kihei is the tenth largest community in Hawaii.

Housing costs in Kihei are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in Hawaii.

Of important note, Kihei is also a town of artists. Kihei has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Kihei’s character.

One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 9.99% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

One of the nice things about Kihei is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities.

The education level of Kihei citizens is substantially higher than the typical US community, as 31.78% of adults in Kihei have at least a bachelor's degree.

The per capita income in Kihei in 2022 was $43,099, which is upper middle income relative to Hawaii and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $172,396 for a family of four. However, Kihei contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Kihei is an extremely ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Kihei home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Kihei residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Kihei also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 13.90% of the town’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Kihei include German, Irish, English, Italian, and French.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Kihei's cultural character, accounting for 16.09% of the town’s population.

The most common language spoken in Kihei is English. Other important languages spoken here include Pacific Island languages and Tagalog.