Tahawai is a rural community in the Western Bay of Plenty District and Bay of Plenty Region of New Zealand's North Island. State Highway 2 runs through it. A peninsula on the eastern side of the area in Tauranga Harbour ends with the small settlements of Tuapiro Point, Ongare Point and Kauri Point, with a walkway between the latter two. A smaller peninsula further north ends at Tanners Point.

Tahawai statistical area, which includes Tanners Point, Ongare Point and Kauri Point, covers 82.11 km (31.70 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 2,050 as of June 2024, with a population density of 25 people per km.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
2006	1,743	—
2013	1,707	−0.30%
2018	1,833	+1.43%
Source:

Tahawai had a population of 1,833 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 126 people (7.4%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 90 people (5.2%) since the 2006 census. There were 738 households, comprising 942 males and 891 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.06 males per female. The median age was 54.5 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 234 people (12.8%) aged under 15 years, 222 (12.1%) aged 15 to 29, 870 (47.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 504 (27.5%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 90.5% European/Pākehā, 10.6% Māori, 1.8% Pacific peoples, 3.6% Asian, and 1.3% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

The percentage of people born overseas was 18.7, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 55.6% had no religion, 30.6% were Christian, 1.1% had Māori religious beliefs, 0.5% were Hindu, 0.2% were Muslim, 0.5% were Buddhist and 2.1% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 267 (16.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 297 (18.6%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $30,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 306 people (19.1%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 726 (45.4%) people were employed full-time, 279 (17.4%) were part-time, and 39 (2.4%) were unemployed.