FORTISVEX Hawaii State Flag 4x6 Feet Nylon - Made in USA with Brass Grommets

A 4x6 foot flag is the first size that really needs a flagpole in the ground. It is too large for a standard house bracket, and that is the honest reason to step up to it rather than any question of appearance.

This is the Hawaii state flag at 4x6 Feet in nylon, made in the United States and finished with brass grommets.

Built to the Hawaii flag specification

The Hawaii flag is set out in the Hawaii Revised Statutes provisions on the state flag, which carry a detailed heraldic blazon. It is eight horizontal stripes in white, red and blue repeating, with the British Union Jack in the canton.

In use since 1816, with the stripe count fixed at eight by King Kamehameha the Third on May 25, 1845, and retained at statehood in 1959.

The statute for this flag describes the design, the colors and the seal or emblem, but it does not fix an overall size that a modern outdoor flag has to match. That is the normal position across most of the country, and it is why every manufacturer builds state flags in the same standard sizes.

We reproduce that design faithfully, in the standard outdoor flag sizes the whole industry uses and that the states themselves buy. What matters on an outdoor flag is that the colors, the seal and the emblems are right, and they are.

The law that defines it, in its own words

Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 5-19 reads:

The official description of the Hawaiian flag as authorized to represent the State of Hawaii on land and sea, and authorized for executive state agencies, second to the stars and stripes of the United States shall be: (1) The Hawaiian flag shall consist of eight horizontal stripes, alternately white, red, blue, etc., beginning at the top, having a jack cantoned in the dexter chief angle next to the point of suspension; (2) The jack shall consist of a blue field charged with a compound saltire (crossing) of alternate tincture white and red, the white having precedence; a narrow edge of white borders each red side of the saltire; (3) A red cross bordered with white is charged (placed) over all; (4) The proportion shall be as follows: (A) The fly (length) is twice the hoist (width); (B) The jack is half the hoist (width) in breadth and 7-16 the fly in length; (C) The arms of the red cross with border shall be equal in width to one of the horizontal stripes; the white border shall be one-third the width of the red cross; (D) The arms of the compound saltire (crossing) are equal in width to the red cross, the tinctures white, red, and the border being in the proportion of 3, 2, 1, respectively.

The statute then adds that when the Hawaiian flag is flown from the same halyard as the flag of the United States it shall be underneath the national colors, and gives the ceremonial folding method.

You do not have to take our word for any of that. Read Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 5-19 in full at the Hawaii State Legislature, and check what we sell against it.

This is the flag we make. Not an approximation of it.

What is on it and what it means

The eight stripes are the eight major islands, Hawaii, Maui, Kahoolawe, Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, Kauai and Niihau. The Union Jack reflects historic ties to Britain, after Vancouver gave Kamehameha the First a British flag in 1793. The colors themselves carry no individual official meaning.

What most listings get wrong

The Union Jack reflects friendship, not colonial status. Hawaii was never a British colony. The designer is uncertain, either Alexander Adams or George Beckley, and sources do not agree.

It is the only state flag containing another country’s flag, and the only one that flew over an independent kingdom.

Where the Hawaii flag flies

The Hawaii State Archives on the Iolani Palace grounds holds royal standards and historic Hae Hawaii, including Queen Liliuokalani's personal royal standard that flew over Iolani Palace on January 17, 1893, the day of the overthrow. It was seized, disappeared for eighty five years, and returned to Hawaii in 1978. The Archives also holds the Hae Hawaii lowered at annexation on August 12, 1898 and one flown over the capitol on statehood day, August 21, 1959. The popular story that the palace flag was torn into souvenir pieces at annexation is treated by archivists as a myth. The flag was tattered from age.

Fly it on Hawaii’s birthday

Hawaii became the 50th state on August 21, 1959. Under the United States Flag Code as amended July 7, 1976, a state flag flown on the state’s birthday takes its place beneath the United States flag, and that day is the one date every year the Hawaii flag has an official reason to go up.

Statehood Day, also called Admission Day, falls on the third Friday in August and is an official paid state holiday. In 2026 it is August 21.

Buy it now and it is on the flagpole for the day. The full list of state birthdays is on our state birthdays page.

Nylon or polyester in Hawaii

Polyester statewide. Constant trade winds, relentless ultraviolet and salt air everywhere, at Honolulu, Hilo and Kailua.

At twenty four square feet the wind load starts to matter, and the verdict above applies with more force than it does to a house flag.

This listing is the nylon. It is the right choice for the sheltered and moderate wind sites named above, on any house bracket, and anywhere the flag comes down in storms. Two things decide that. Nylon is light, so it flies on the breeze most yards actually get instead of hanging limp, and it dries fast, which is what fights mildew in a humid climate. What it gives up is ultraviolet life: nylon’s amide bonds absorb ultraviolet and break, so under hard sun it loses strength and color faster than polyester, and it loses roughly a tenth of its strength while it is wet. If your site is one of the exposed ones above, look at the polyester version of this flag instead.

One more thing that decides it, and it is the part people only learn after buying twice: a nylon flag flies on days a polyester flag will not. If the flag matters to you on a still morning, on a holiday, at a funeral, at a ceremony, that is an argument for this one even on a site where the polyester would last longer. A flag that hangs is not doing its job either.

The working benchmark most institutions use comes from the American Legion, which reports that the United States government expects a flag flown daily from sunrise to sunset to last about ninety days, and one flown around the clock about a quarter of that. Retailer experience runs three to six months for nylon and four to eight for polyester flown daily, and one to three years for a flag flown only on occasions. Those are working figures, not a warranty, and exposure moves them a long way in either direction.

How the 4x6 Feet is built

A 4x6 foot flag carries well over half again the area of a 3x5 foot flag, so it catches proportionally more wind and the fly end works harder for it. Four rows of lock stitching, and it needs all four.

The arithmetic behind that: 24 square feet of nylon at roughly two ounces a square yard. In a thirty mile an hour wind the fly end of a flag this size travels faster than the wind itself, because the wave running out to the tip accelerates as it goes. That is why the tip wears out first and why the stitching count at that end is the number worth reading on any listing.

Still a one person job, but you will notice the difference the first windy day you try to take it down alone. Do it before the weather, not during it.

Lock stitching means each stitch is knotted into the next, so a broken thread stops where it broke rather than unzipping the seam. 4 rows does not mean 4 times the strength; it means 3 backups. The heading is heavy duty white and reinforced, an inch and a half wide, with two solid brass grommets and tooth washers. At twenty four square feet the load on those two points is real.

The flag material is commercial grade nylon. It is light enough to fly in a gentle breeze, it sheds water rather than holding it, and it dries fast, which matters because a flag that stays wet stays heavy and works its seams harder. The ink is UV resistant and field tested; sun is what takes a flag’s color, and the ink decides how long it holds.

Why this flag is harder to make than most

The compound saltire of the Union Jack has to be proportioned exactly or it reads as wrong to anyone who knows it, and it sits in a canton over eight stripes that all have to line up.

For what it is worth, the North American Vexillological Association surveyed 72 state, provincial and territorial flags in 2001 and rated them from zero to ten. The Hawaii flag placed 11, at 7.15 out of 10.

Will it fit my flagpole?

It suits an in-ground flagpole of eighteen to twenty five feet. On a six foot house bracket it will drag and wrap.

Questions about the 4x6 Feet

What flagpole does a 4x6 foot flag need? An in-ground flagpole of eighteen to twenty five feet. It is too large for a standard house bracket, which is the honest reason to choose it.

Is a 4x6 foot flag worth it over a 3x5 foot flag? Only if the flagpole is tall enough. On a twenty foot flagpole a 3x5 foot flag looks lost and a 4x6 foot flag fills it. On a six foot bracket the 4x6 foot flag will wrap.

Can I fly a 4x6 foot state flag with a 4x6 foot United States flag? Yes, and on two flagpoles of equal height that is the correct pairing, with the United States flag to the viewer’s left.

Where the step up starts to cost you

Going from a 3x5 foot flag to a 4x6 foot flag is where buying cheap begins to be expensive. The extra area means more force at the fly end and more load on the grommets, so a 4x6 built to a budget fails faster than a 3x5 built the same way. This is the size where construction stops being a nicety.

Specifications

• Size: 4x6 Feet
• Area: 24 square feet
• Material: 100 percent nylon
• Fly end: 4 rows of lock stitching
• Heading: heavy duty white, reinforced, 1-1/2 inch
• Finish: Brass Grommets
• Ink: UV resistant, field tested
• Made in the United States by FORTISVEX

Which size do I need?

The rule behind both tables below is that a flag’s length should run about a quarter to a third of the flagpole’s height. Where two sizes both fit, the smaller one flies more often and lasts longer, and the larger one reads from further away.

If you know your flagpole height, start here.

• 6 Feet house bracket: 2x3 Feet or 3x5 Feet
• 15 to 20 Feet flagpole: 3x5 Feet or 4x6 Feet
• 20 to 25 Feet flagpole: 4x6 Feet or 5x8 Feet
• 25 to 35 Feet flagpole: 5x8 Feet or 6x10 Feet
• 35 to 45 Feet flagpole: 6x10 Feet or 8x12 Feet
• 45 to 60 Feet flagpole: 8x12 Feet or 10x15 Feet
• 60 to 80 Feet flagpole: 10x15 Feet or 12x18 Feet
• 80 to 100 Feet flagpole: 12x18 Feet or 15x25 Feet
• 100 to 120 Feet flagpole: 15x25 Feet or 20x30 Feet
• 120 to 150 Feet flagpole: 20x30 Feet or 20x38 Feet
• 150 to 200 Feet flagpole: 20x38 Feet or 30x50 Feet
• 200 to 240 Feet flagpole: 30x50 Feet or 30x60 Feet
• 240 Feet and above: 30x60 Feet or 50x80 Feet, engineered to the flagpole

If you know your flag size, start here.

• 2x3 Feet: 4 to 8 Feet bracket or garden flagpole
• 3x5 Feet: 6 Feet bracket, or 15 to 20 Feet in-ground flagpole
• 4x6 Feet: 18 to 25 Feet in-ground flagpole
• 5x8 Feet: 25 to 35 Feet flagpole
• 6x10 Feet: 30 to 40 Feet flagpole
• 8x12 Feet: 40 to 50 Feet flagpole
• 10x15 Feet: 50 to 60 Feet flagpole
• 12x18 Feet: 60 to 80 Feet flagpole
• 15x25 Feet: 80 to 100 Feet flagpole
• 20x30 Feet: 100 to 120 Feet flagpole
• 20x38 Feet: 120 to 150 Feet flagpole. This is the garrison size under Executive Order 10834, at a one to one point nine ratio rather than the two to three of the commercial sizes, and it is the size flown at the White House and the Capitol
• 30x50 Feet: 150 to 200 Feet flagpole
• 30x60 Feet: 200 to 240 Feet flagpole. This is the largest standard commercial size
• 50x80 Feet: 240 Feet and above, engineered to the flagpole

The quarter to a third rule holds all the way up, but above about a hundred feet the flag and the flagpole stop being two purchases and become one engineered system: the truck, the halyard, the foundation and the wind load all have to be specified together, and a flag bought without checking the flagpole rating damages the flagpole first. Several famous installations deliberately fly longer than the rule, which is a choice made with an engineer rather than from a chart.

We carry the full range whether or not every size appears on this website. If the size you need is not listed, we can still supply it.

About the back of the flag

A printed flag reads correctly from the front and reversed from the back. That is normal and it is true of almost every flag flown in the country. A flag that reads correctly from both sides is a double sided flag, built as two flags sewn together with a liner between them, and it costs roughly twice as much and weighs roughly twice as much. Unless the statute for a particular state requires it, single sided is the standard and the right choice.

Flying it with the United States flag

The United States Flag Code, Title 4, Section 7, governs this. No other flag goes above the United States flag, or to its right when on the same level, which is the viewer’s left. On two flagpoles of the same height the United States flag takes the viewer’s left and both flags should be the same size. If the flagpoles differ in height, the United States flag goes on the taller one. On a single flagpole carrying two flags the United States flag goes at the top. The Flag Code is advisory for civilians and carries no penalty, but it is the standard every institution follows.

Buy two and they both last longer

Fly one for a month, then swap. Two flags rotated monthly will outlast three flags flown to destruction, because the fabric recovers when it rests and the fly end stops taking the same abuse in the same place. Take it down in severe weather; a flag left up through a real windstorm can take more damage in one night than in six normal months. And watch the fly end rather than the middle, because a few minutes with a needle when the fraying starts buys another season.

For cities, counties, schools and agencies

We supply state flags to municipalities, school districts, fire and police departments, courthouses and state agencies. Tax exempt accounts are handled through the tax exempt page. For quantities, replacement schedules or sizes not listed, use the contact page.

Why buy it from us

We are a small American company and we stock what we sell. Every flag here is made in the United States, printed in UV resistant ink, and finished to the construction described above rather than to a price point. We would rather sell you one flag that lasts than three that do not. Free shipping on orders over twenty five dollars.