Hawaii first required its residents to register their motor vehicles and display license plates in 1922, while still an organized incorporated territory of the United States. It was admitted to the Union as the 50th state in August 1959.
No slogans were used on passenger plates during the period covered by this subsection.
| Image | Dates issued | Design | Serial format | Serials issued | Notes |
|---|
| 1922 | White on dark green; vertical "HAWAII" and "1922" at right | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county | Serials started from 1-000 in Honolulu County, from 20-000 in Hawaii County, from 30-000 in Maui County, and from 40-000 in Kauai County. This continued until 1926.[1] |
| 1923 | Green on white with border line; "HAWAII 1923" at bottom | 12345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1924 | Red on white with border line; "HAWAII 1924" at top | 12345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1925 | Black on orange with border line; "HAWAII 1925" at bottom | 12345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1926 | White on green with border line; vertical "HAWAII" and "1926" at left | 12345 | Issued in blocks by county | Serials started from 50000 in Honolulu County; starting serials in other counties same as 1922–25. This continued until 1940.[1] |
| 1927 | Black on silver with border line; "HAWAII 1927" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1928 | Orange on black with border line; "HAWAII 1928" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1929 | Golden yellow on blue with border line; "HAWAII 1929" centered at top | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1930 | White on red with border line; "HAWAII 1930" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1931 | White on black with border line; "HAWAII 1931" centered at top | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1932 | Yellow on green with border line; "HAWAII 1932" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1933 | Red on orange; "HAWAII 1933" centered at top | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1934 | White on blue; "HAWAII 1934" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1935 | Black on golden yellow; "HAWAII 1935" centered at top | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1936 | White on green; "HAWAII 1936" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1937 | Blue on white; "HAWAII 1937" centered at top | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1938 | Yellow on black; "HAWAII 1938" centered at bottom | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1939 | White on blue; "HAWAII 1939" centered at top | 12-345 | Issued in blocks by county |
| 1940 | Black on yellow; "HAWAII 1940" at bottom, offset to right | A/A1234 | County-coded (see right) | Honolulu County used O as the second letter; Hawaii County used H; Maui County used M; Kauai County used K.[1] |
| 1941 | Red on gray; "HAWAII 1941" centered at top | A1234 | County-coded |
| 1942–45}} | White on black; "HAWAII 1942" centered at bottom | A1234 | County-coded | Revalidated for 1943, 1944 and 1945 with windshield stickers, due to metal conservation for World War II. |
| 1946 | Black on white; "HAWAII 1946" centered at top | A1234 | County-coded |
| 1947 | White on green; "HAWAII 1947" centered at bottom | A1234 | County-coded |
| 1948 | Black on golden yellow; "HAWAII 1948" centered at top | A1234 | County-coded |
| 1949 | Golden yellow on black; "HAWAII 1949" centered at bottom | A1234 | County-coded |
| 1950 | As 1948 base, but with "HAWAII 1950" at top | 1A1234
A1234 | County-coded | 1A1234 serial format used in Honolulu County. |
| 1951 | As 1949 base, but with "HAWAII 51" at bottom | 1A-123
A 123
A-1234 | County-coded |
| 1952 | As 1948 base, but with "HAWAII 52" at top | 1A-123
A-123
A-1234 | County-coded |
In 1956, the United States, Canada, and Mexico came to an agreement with the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, the Automobile Manufacturers Association and the National Safety Council that standardized the size for license plates for vehicles (except those for motorcycles) at {{convert|6|in|cm}} in height by {{convert|12|in|cm}} in width, with standardized mounting holes.[2] The first Hawaii license plate that complied with these standards was a modification of the 1953 plate, introduced in 1956.[3]
Since 1969, all Hawaii passenger plates have featured a round mounting hole at the top right and horizontal slots in the other three corners.{{why|date=March 2018}}
| Image | Dates issued | Design | Slogan | Serial format | Serials issued | Notes |
|---|
| 1953–56}} | Golden yellow on black; "HAWAII" at bottom, offset to left | none | 1A-123
A-123
A-1234
1A-1234 | County-coded | Validated for 1953 with silver tabs, for 1954 and 1956 with golden yellow tabs, and for 1955 with white tabs. |
| 1957–60 | White on red with border line; "HAWAII" centered at bottom | "ALOHA" centered at top | 1A-123
A-123
A-1234
1A-1234 | County-coded | Validated each year with windshield stickers. |
| 1961–68 | White on green with border line; "HAWAII" centered at top | "ALOHA STATE" centered at bottom | 1A-123
A-1234
1A-1234
K-12345 | County-coded | Validated each year with windshield stickers. |
| 1969–75 | Black on reflective yellow with border line; "HAWAII" centered at top; "69" etched in top right corner | "ALOHA STATE" centered at bottom | 1A-123
A-1234
1A-1234
K-12345 | County-coded |
| 1976–80 | Blue on reflective white with border line; "HAWAII" centered at top; pink images of King Kamehameha I and Diamond Head screened in background; red hibiscus screened in top left corner and "76" in top right corner | "ALOHA STATE" centered at bottom | 1A-1234
A-12345 | County-coded |
| 1981–90 | Brown on reflective white; "HAWAII" centered at top; orange warrior head image screened in background; "81" screened in top right corner | "ALOHA STATE" centered at bottom | ABC 123 | County-coded (see right) | Honolulu County used A, B, C and D as the first letter; Hawaii County used H; Maui County used M; Kauai County used K.[1][4] |
| 1991–present | Black on reflective white with rainbow graphic | "ALOHA STATE" at bottom | Coded by county of issuance:[4][5]- ABC 123, where first letter is A-G, J, N, P, or R-Y; sequence may not include H, K, L, or M in any position (City and County of Honolulu)
- HAB 123 or ZAB 123 (Hawai{{okina}}i County)
- KAB 123 (Kaua{{okina}}i County)
- MAB 123 or LAB 123 (Maui County)
| Series with first letter A-D not issued. Honolulu plates issued starting with E series, up to TTA series as of 2019.[4] |
1. ^1 2 3 {{cite web|url=http://www.allaboutlicenseplates.com/athome.asp?State=Hawaii |title=Hawaii License Plates |publisher=allaboutlicenseplates.com |accessdate=August 24, 2017}}
2. ^{{cite magazine |last=Garrish |first=Christopher |date=October 2016 |title=Reconsidering the Standard Plate Size |magazine=Plates |publisher=Automobile License Plate Collectors Association |volume=62 |number=5}}
3. ^http://www.plateshack.com/y2k/Hawaii/hiy2k.html
4. ^1 2 3 4 5 {{cite news|last=Watanabe |first=June |date=February 19, 2010 |title=Kokua Line: Alphabet soup |url=http://archives.starbulletin.com/content/20100220_Alphabet_soup |newspaper=Honolulu Star-Bulletin |accessdate=January 23, 2011}}
5. ^{{cite news| last=Watanabe | first=June | title=Kokua Line: Some letters exclusive to neighbor island plates | date=March 2, 2010 | newspaper=Honolulu Star-Bulletin | url=http://archives.starbulletin.com/content/20100302_Some_letters_exclusive_to_neighbor_island_plates | accessdate=2011-01-23}}