Mangawhai Heads is a township in Northland, New Zealand. Waipu is 21 kilometres northwest, and Mangawhai is 5 kilometres southwest. Mangawhai Heads is on the north shore of the Mangawhai Harbour.

The Mangawhai Cliffs Walkway, north of the township, is 4.5 kilometres long walk to Paepae-o-Tū / Bream Tail, and has a lookout point.

Mangawhai Heads Beach is an intermediate-level surf beach.

The Mangawhai Harbour is a part of the rohe of Te Uri-o-Hau, a tribal group either seen as an independent iwi, or as a hapū of Ngāti Whātua. The name refers to Te Whai, a historic rangatira of Ngāti Whātua, who shares his name with the short-tail stingray, whai, found in the harbour. Te Whai had a fortified pā at Mangawhai Point, a central headland in the harbour.

Mangawhai Museum, opened in 2014, features displays on the area's local history.

A new subdivision called The Rise or Mangawhai North is planned northwest of the existing settlement.

Mangawhai Heads covers 6.99 km (2.70 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 2,850 as of June 2024, with a population density of 408 people per km.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
2006	927	—
2013	1,239	+4.23%
2018	1,995	+10.00%
2023	2,685	+6.12%
Source:

Mangawhai Heads had a population of 2,685 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 690 people (34.6%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 1,446 people (116.7%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,314 males, 1,359 females and 12 people of other genders in 1,101 dwellings. 2.1% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 51.0 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 429 people (16.0%) aged under 15 years, 303 (11.3%) aged 15 to 29, 1,077 (40.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 876 (32.6%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 92.1% European (Pākehā); 13.1% Māori; 2.8% Pasifika; 3.8% Asian; 0.9% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.5% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 98.3%, Māori language by 2.0%, Samoan by 0.2%, and other languages by 7.8%. No language could be spoken by 1.3% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.3%. The percentage of people born overseas was 21.9, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 28.6% Christian, 0.7% Hindu, 0.2% Islam, 0.1% Māori religious beliefs, 0.6% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, 0.2% Jewish, and 0.7% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 62.3%, and 6.3% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 402 (17.8%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,263 (56.0%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 489 (21.7%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $34,400, compared with $41,500 nationally. 261 people (11.6%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 855 (37.9%) people were employed full-time, 351 (15.6%) were part-time, and 51 (2.3%) were unemployed.