How many Web Developers does Hawaii employ?

BLS OES counts 360 Web Developers employed in Hawaii in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for Hawaii different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Hawaii's overall index of 109.7 reflects rents 128.7, services 191.7, and goods 110.3.

How wide is the wage spread in Hawaii?

P10 to P90 spans $52,190 to $186,870. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Hawaii?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Hawaii.

Web developer (15-1254) vs software engineer (15-1252) in Hawaii — what's the gap?

BLS splits these into separate SOC codes, and the gap is large. In Hawaii, software developers (15-1252) typically earn 40-80% above web developers (15-1254) at the median, reflecting the latter's mix of agency work, WordPress/Shopify implementation, marketing-site builds, and front-end-only roles. Job titles labeled 'web developer' that are functionally full-stack engineers (React/Node, system design, on-call rotation) are usually classified by employers under 15-1252 and do not appear in this page's BLS aggregate. Read this page as the front-end / agency / CMS-implementer wage band, not the full software-engineering market.

Front-end vs back-end vs full-stack web developer pay in Hawaii?

BLS does not segment by stack within 15-1254. In Hawaii, dedicated back-end web developers (Node/Python/PHP/.NET) typically earn at or above the BLS P75; full-stack developers cluster mid-range; pure front-end / UI-build / WordPress-theme work concentrates near the BLS median or below. The Hawaii agency markets in tech-heavy metros pay a premium for React + TypeScript depth and modern build tooling; CMS-only stacks (WordPress/Drupal/Wix) pay below the BLS figure shown on this page.

Agency / contract vs in-house vs freelance web developer in Hawaii?

Agency-employed web developers in Hawaii typically anchor near the BLS median with limited bonus exposure. In-house developers at non-tech companies (e-commerce, media, government) sit at or above median with stable benefits. Freelance / contract web developers can earn substantially above the BLS figure on a gross-hourly basis, but net of self-employment tax (~15.3%), self-paid health insurance, lack of paid leave, and revenue-gap risk, the realized take-home premium is closer to 10-20% than the headline gross might suggest. Specialty contract work (e-commerce platform migrations, headless CMS, accessibility remediation) commands the largest premium in Hawaii.

How Much Do Web Developers Make in Hawaii? $94K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

Web Developers in Hawaii earn a BLS median of $93,600, with real take-home of $85,321 after BEA RPP adjustment.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $52,190 · P25 $67,000 · P75 $186,870 · P90 $186,870.
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
Web Developer ranking: #16 on the BLS table, #24 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Hawaii

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$52,190	$47,574
P25 (lower quartile)	$67,000	$61,074
P50 (median)	$93,600	$85,321
P75 (upper quartile)	$186,870	$170,342
P90 (top tier)	$186,870	$170,342
Mean	$115,850	$105,603
Employment	360 Web Developers in Hawaii

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Hawaii index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	109.7
Goods	110.3
Services	191.7
Rents	128.7

Hawaii is a high-cost state — RPP 109.7 above the national 100 baseline. Most of the cost premium routes through rents (128.7) and services (191.7).

After-tax take-home — Hawaii (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Web Developer)	$93,600	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$11,839	12.6% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$6,794	1.4–11% (12 brackets)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$7,160	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$67,807	72.4% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$61,809	÷ (109.7 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Hawaii state-tax burden means for Web Developer take-home

Hawaii carries one of the heavier state-tax loads in the country at this income tier (7.3% effective on the BLS median). Combined with federal and FICA, gross-to-take-home spread is 27.6%, leaving $67,807 pre-RPP and $61,809 after the 109.7 cost-of-living index — a $31,791 gap from the headline gross.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $90,930 for Web Developers with mean pay of $98,790 and total employment of 78,860. Hawaii sits at #16 on nominal pay and #24 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Hawaii falls 8 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How many Web Developers does Hawaii employ?: BLS OES counts 360 Web Developers employed in Hawaii in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for Hawaii different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Hawaii's overall index of 109.7 reflects rents 128.7, services 191.7, and goods 110.3.
How wide is the wage spread in Hawaii?: P10 to P90 spans $52,190 to $186,870. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Hawaii?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Hawaii.
Web developer (15-1254) vs software engineer (15-1252) in Hawaii — what's the gap?: BLS splits these into separate SOC codes, and the gap is large. In Hawaii, software developers (15-1252) typically earn 40-80% above web developers (15-1254) at the median, reflecting the latter's mix of agency work, WordPress/Shopify implementation, marketing-site builds, and front-end-only roles. Job titles labeled 'web developer' that are functionally full-stack engineers (React/Node, system design, on-call rotation) are usually classified by employers under 15-1252 and do not appear in this page's BLS aggregate. Read this page as the front-end / agency / CMS-implementer wage band, not the full software-engineering market.
Front-end vs back-end vs full-stack web developer pay in Hawaii?: BLS does not segment by stack within 15-1254. In Hawaii, dedicated back-end web developers (Node/Python/PHP/.NET) typically earn at or above the BLS P75; full-stack developers cluster mid-range; pure front-end / UI-build / WordPress-theme work concentrates near the BLS median or below. The Hawaii agency markets in tech-heavy metros pay a premium for React + TypeScript depth and modern build tooling; CMS-only stacks (WordPress/Drupal/Wix) pay below the BLS figure shown on this page.
Agency / contract vs in-house vs freelance web developer in Hawaii?: Agency-employed web developers in Hawaii typically anchor near the BLS median with limited bonus exposure. In-house developers at non-tech companies (e-commerce, media, government) sit at or above median with stable benefits. Freelance / contract web developers can earn substantially above the BLS figure on a gross-hourly basis, but net of self-employment tax (~15.3%), self-paid health insurance, lack of paid leave, and revenue-gap risk, the realized take-home premium is closer to 10-20% than the headline gross might suggest. Specialty contract work (e-commerce platform migrations, headless CMS, accessibility remediation) commands the largest premium in Hawaii.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 15-1254, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Hawaii Web Developer pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.