United StatesHawaiian IslandsVolcanic island
Molokaʻi
677 km² rising to 1,515 m out of the Pacific Ocean.
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
677km²
Area
188km
Coastline
1,515m
Highest point
Kamakou
7,345
People
27°C
Warmest sea
September
3,766km
To the mainland
When to go to Molokaʻi
Best for the beach from May to September.
The sea is warmest in September (27 °C) and coolest in February (24 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in Maui and Kalawao counties in Hawaii, United States
Molokaʻi is an volcanic island in United States. It belongs to Hawaiian Islands. It covers 677 km², with 188 km of coastline. Its highest point, Kamakou, rises to 1,515 m. About 7,345 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 3,766 km away.
Getting there
- Molokai Airport (MKK)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at MKK airport (Kaunakakai)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- 3,766 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From May to Septemberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Molokaʻi.
- 31beachesWaipū, Kaupoa Beach, Dixie Maru and 28 more
- 13viewpointsWaterfall, Kaulaupapa Lookout, Kamalo Wharf and 10 more
- 2lighthousesMolokai Lighthouse
- 142named peaksKaholoapele, Kaunuohua, Kīlau and 139 more
- 27waterfallsPāpalaua Falls, Hīpuapua Falls, Kahiwa Falls and 24 more
- 14ruins and archaeological sitesHokukano-Ualapue Complex, Kalauonakukui Heiau, Hokukano Heiau and 11 more
- 1dive centresMolokai Fish and Dive
- 1campsitesCamping
- 3hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 5restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Molokaʻi in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Molokaʻi, each with its own numbers.
32beaches and covesCoastya
7waterfallsCascadyas
Tallest waterfall
900m
Oloʻupena Falls
according to Cascadyas
Beach with the warmest sea
26.9°C
Kapukahehu Beach
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
32 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Sandy Beach26.6°C
- Fagans Beach26.6°C
- Kapukahehu Beach26.9°C
- Kaunalā Beach26.9°C
- Kealapūpūakiha26.8°C
- Pāpōhaku Beach26.9°C
- Pōhakumāuliuli26.8°C
- Kāhili26.7°C
24 more on CoastyaOpen Coastya ↗
7 waterfalls
on Cascadyas, the waterfall atlas
- Oloʻupena Falls900m
- Pu'uka'oku Falls840m
- Papalaua Falls
- Kahiwa Falls
- Hīpuapua Falls
- Moa‘ula Falls
- Other Molokai Waterfalls
Cascadyas is coming soonOpen Cascadyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 322 m above the sea. 48 % of it is below 200 m.
- 14 %0–50 m
- 34 %50–200 m
- 29 %200–500 m
- 18 %500–1,000 m
- 5 %1,000–2,000 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
50 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Waialua3,751 people
- Kaunakakai3,425 people
- Kualapu‘u2,027 people
- Ho‘olehua1,370 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 |
| Night low (°C) | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 23 |
| Sea (°C) | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 |
| Rain (mm) | 83 | 79 | 107 | 59 | 52 | 39 | 40 | 49 | 51 | 70 | 82 | 86 |
| Wet days | 10 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 12 |
| Sun h/day | 7.5 | 7.6 | 7.8 | 8.9 | 9.9 | 10.3 | 10.2 | 9.8 | 9.5 | 8.3 | 7.5 | 7.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 19 | 20 | 20 | 22 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 21 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.9 | +1.2 |
| 2021 | +1.1 | +0.9 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.5 | ±0.0 | −0.3 | −0.5 | +0.3 | +0.2 |
| 2022 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +1.1 | +0.4 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.5 |
| 2023 | +1.0 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.7 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.6 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.5 |
| 2024 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.8 |
| 2025 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +0.8 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +1.0 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
LanaiUnited States366 km²1,030 m36 km away
MauiUnited States1,889 km²3,055 m87 km away
OahuUnited States1,555 km²1,227 m106 km away
KahoolaweUnited States115 km²452 m78 km away
HawaiiUnited States10,434 km²4,207 m238 km away
KauaʻiUnited States1,442 km²1,598 m277 km away
NiʻihauUnited States186 km²381 m337 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q193253) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Cascadyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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