Kahawa is a suburb settlement spanning the Kiambu County and Nairobi County borders along Thika Road. It is administratively divided into four wards across the two counties: Kahawa and Kahawa West wards in Nairobi county and Kahawa Wendani and Kahawa Sukari wards in Kiambu county. Despite its proximity to the city, half of it is administratively in Ruiru, while some parts, such as Kenyatta University, Kahawa Barracks, Kiwanja and Githurai 44, are administratively in Kasarani.