Cooloongup vs Rockingham

Cooloongup is the younger of the two, with a median age of 42 against 49 in Rockingham. In both, most households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Rockingham, most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Rockingham: a median of $800,000, against $730,000 in Cooloongup. On these figures, Rockingham tends to suit people living alone.

Which one suits you?

There is no overall winner — the suburb that suits a family with school-age kids is routinely the wrong one for someone commuting into the city. So each of these answers its own question, against a checklist you can see, using the same figures in the tables below.

Families with school-age kids

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Cooloongup has more separate houses rather than flats (92% vs 66%)
  • Rockingham has more schools inside the suburb (13 vs 2)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.

First-home buyers

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Rockingham

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (85/100 vs 19/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Rockingham

ahead on 4 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more GPs (9 vs 2)
  • is more walkable (85/100 vs 19/100)
  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (34% vs 8%)
  • But Cooloongup carries lower crime risk (77/100 vs 88/100)

Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Rockingham

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (6.1% vs -0.6%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

Cooloongup and Rockingham drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Cooloongup Rockingham
Hides rows where both suburbs match

Bars start at zero. Scores, risks and rankings are drawn against their full 0–100 range; other rows are drawn in proportion to the larger of the two.

Side by side, out of 100

Risks are inverted — shown as safety and low exposure — so a longer bar always means better.

Cooloongup Rockingham
Walkability 19 / 85
Cooloongup — Walkability: 19/100 Rockingham — Walkability: 85/100
Safety 23 / 12
Cooloongup — Safety: 23/100 Rockingham — Safety: 12/100
Low fire risk 41 / 75
Cooloongup — Low fire risk: 41/100 Rockingham — Low fire risk: 75/100
Low flood risk 100 / 100
Cooloongup — Low flood risk: 100/100 Rockingham — Low flood risk: 100/100

Demographics

Rockingham has more residents (15,312 vs 6,696); Rockingham skews older (49 vs 42).

Cooloongup Rockingham
Population 6,696 15,312
+129% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -0.6% +6.1%
Median age 42 49
Median household income $62,764/yr
+3% vs other
 $60,788/yr
Median weekly rent $300/wk
same for both

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Cooloongup Rockingham
0-4 5.4% / 4.1%
Cooloongup — 0-4: 5.4% Rockingham — 0-4: 4.1%
5-14 12.0% / 8.7%
Cooloongup — 5-14: 12.0% Rockingham — 5-14: 8.7%
15-19 5.7% / 4.4%
Cooloongup — 15-19: 5.7% Rockingham — 15-19: 4.4%
20-24 5.4% / 5.9%
Cooloongup — 20-24: 5.4% Rockingham — 20-24: 5.9%
25-34 12.8% / 11.1%
Cooloongup — 25-34: 12.8% Rockingham — 25-34: 11.1%
35-44 10.9% / 10.7%
Cooloongup — 35-44: 10.9% Rockingham — 35-44: 10.7%
45-54 12.6% / 12.7%
Cooloongup — 45-54: 12.6% Rockingham — 45-54: 12.7%
55-64 14.5% / 15.2%
Cooloongup — 55-64: 14.5% Rockingham — 55-64: 15.2%
65-74 11.8% / 13.8%
Cooloongup — 65-74: 11.8% Rockingham — 65-74: 13.8%
75-84 6.4% / 9.3%
Cooloongup — 75-84: 6.4% Rockingham — 75-84: 9.3%
85+ 2.4% / 4.0%
Cooloongup — 85+: 2.4% Rockingham — 85+: 4.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.2%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Cooloongup 40.4% lone person
Cooloongup — Lone Person: 40.4% Cooloongup — Couple Families: 31.3% Cooloongup — One Parent Families: 22.5% Cooloongup — Group Household: 4.1% Cooloongup — Other Families: 1.8%
Rockingham 55.1% lone person
Rockingham — Lone Person: 55.1% Rockingham — Couple Families: 24.4% Rockingham — One Parent Families: 15.0% Rockingham — Group Household: 4.1% Rockingham — Other Families: 1.3%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Cooloongup 28.3% renting
Cooloongup — Owned Outright: 31.7% Cooloongup — Mortgage: 39.9% Cooloongup — Renting: 28.3%
Rockingham 38.2% renting
Rockingham — Owned Outright: 34.8% Rockingham — Mortgage: 27.1% Rockingham — Renting: 38.2%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Where residents were born

Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents, 2021 Census. A dash means that country is not among the suburb's own eight largest.

Cooloongup Rockingham
England 10.6% / 14.9%
Cooloongup — England: 10.6% Rockingham — England: 14.9%
New Zealand 5.3% / 4.1%
Cooloongup — New Zealand: 5.3% Rockingham — New Zealand: 4.1%
Scotland 1.5% / 2.3%
Cooloongup — Scotland: 1.5% Rockingham — Scotland: 2.3%
Philippines 1.6% / 1.3%
Cooloongup — Philippines: 1.6% Rockingham — Philippines: 1.3%
South Africa 1.0% / 0.9%
Cooloongup — South Africa: 1.0% Rockingham — South Africa: 0.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (14.9%).

Qualifications

Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.

Cooloongup Rockingham
Certificate III & IV 19.3% / 19.3%
Cooloongup — Certificate III & IV: 19.3% Rockingham — Certificate III & IV: 19.3%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.3% / 7.7%
Cooloongup — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.3% Rockingham — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.7%
Bachelor Degree 4.2% / 6.8%
Cooloongup — Bachelor Degree: 4.2% Rockingham — Bachelor Degree: 6.8%
Postgraduate Degree 0.8% / 1.7%
Cooloongup — Postgraduate Degree: 0.8% Rockingham — Postgraduate Degree: 1.7%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 0.9% / 1.3%
Cooloongup — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 0.9% Rockingham — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.3%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Cooloongup 91.5% houses
Cooloongup — Houses: 91.5% Cooloongup — Townhouses: 7.7% Cooloongup — Flats / Apartments: 0.8%
Rockingham 65.5% houses
Rockingham — Houses: 65.5% Rockingham — Townhouses: 20.1% Rockingham — Flats / Apartments: 14.3%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Cooloongup Rockingham
Median house price $730,000 $800,000
Median unit price $535,000 $565,000
Median land price — $543,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 26 days
from 56 sales
 24 days
from 182 sales

House price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Cooloongup Rockingham
3 bed $700K / $750K
Cooloongup — 3 bed: $700K (68 sales) Rockingham — 3 bed: $750K (190 sales)

68 vs 190 sales

4 bed $750K / $862K
Cooloongup — 4 bed: $750K (48 sales) Rockingham — 4 bed: $862K (144 sales)

48 vs 144 sales

5 bed $840K / $975K
Cooloongup — 5 bed: $840K (7 sales) Rockingham — 5 bed: $975K (16 sales)

7 vs 16 sales

Development activity

Cooloongup Rockingham
New dwellings approved 1,869
across Rockingham
same for both
Approvals change year on year -11%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Cooloongup Rockingham
Houses 4.2%
$600/wk on $749K
 4.3%
$665/wk on $800K
Units — 4.6%
$535/wk on $599K

Ranking within WA

Cooloongup Rockingham
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 20% of WA Higher than 18% of WA
Schools — Higher than 38% of WA
Walkability Higher than 74% of WA Higher than 97% of WA
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 55% of WA Higher than 56% of WA
NBN connectivity Higher than 83% of WA Higher than 76% of WA
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 37% of WA Higher than 47% of WA
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 18% of WA

Liveability

Rockingham is more walkable (85 vs 19); Rockingham scores higher overall (44 vs 25).

Cooloongup Rockingham
Grade D C
Score 25/100 44/100
Socio-economic band high-need area
decile 1/10
 below-average income
decile 2/10

Risk profile

Cooloongup carries more bushfire risk (59 vs 25); Rockingham carries more crime risk (88 vs 77).

Cooloongup Rockingham
Bushfire Moderate
59/100
 Low
25/100
Crime High
77/100
 High
88/100
Flood None
0/100
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
 Low
34/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 5
within 5 km
 6
within 5 km

Schools

Cooloongup Rockingham
Inside the suburb 2 13
Rated above peers 0 2
Rated at peers 1 3
Rated below peers 1 2

Schools in Cooloongup

  • Cooloongup Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • East Waikiki Primary School Government · Primary below peers

Schools in Rockingham

  • Rockingham Montessori School Independent · Primary above peers
  • SMYL Community College Independent · Secondary · Special school above peers
  • Kolbe Catholic College Catholic · Secondary at peers
  • Rockingham Beach Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • Rockingham Senior High School Government · Secondary at peers
  • Bungaree Primary School Government · Primary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Cooloongup Rockingham
Supermarkets 1 4
Cafes & restaurants 0 18
Parks & reserves 4 21
Childcare 4 10
GPs 2 9
Pharmacies 2 7
Hospitals 1 0
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 8
Fuel stations 0 2
EV chargers 0 4
Waterways 1
same for both

Mobility

Cooloongup Rockingham
Walkability score 19/100 85/100
Distance to Perth 48.4 km
+2% vs other
 47.6 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 48 min 47 min
Public transport score 93/100
Rail · Bus
 79/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 113.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 581.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.5%
postcode 6168
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 50
postcode 6168
same for both

How people get to work

Method of travel on census day 2021 — which fell during COVID restrictions, so working from home is inflated and every travel mode understated.

Cooloongup Rockingham
Car (driver) 76.9% / 77.4%
Cooloongup — Car (driver): 76.9% Rockingham — Car (driver): 77.4%
Car (passenger) 6.9% / 5.9%
Cooloongup — Car (passenger): 6.9% Rockingham — Car (passenger): 5.9%
Train 6.3% / 5.3%
Cooloongup — Train: 6.3% Rockingham — Train: 5.3%
Worked from Home 4.6% / 6.1%
Cooloongup — Worked from Home: 4.6% Rockingham — Worked from Home: 6.1%
Bus 3.1% / 2.3%
Cooloongup — Bus: 3.1% Rockingham — Bus: 2.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (77.4%).

Setting

Cooloongup Rockingham
Elevation 1 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 6 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 4.4 km 1.2 km

NBN connectivity

Cooloongup Rockingham
Connectivity score 71/100 63/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 47%
2,994 premises
 31%
10,210 premises

Climate

Cooloongup Rockingham
Annual rainfall 745 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 31.4°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.6°C
same for both

Council rates

Cooloongup Rockingham
Average residential rate $2,007/yr
same for both
Council Rockingham
same for both

Federal electorate

Cooloongup Rockingham
Division Brand
same for both
Member Madeleine King
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Cooloongup Rockingham
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $800,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Cooloongup

Easy Commute Large Blocks Outer Transport Hub

Rockingham

Coastal Outer Parks Retirees Townhouses

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Cooloongup

Cooloongup vs Baldivis Cooloongup vs Waikiki Cooloongup vs Safety Bay Cooloongup vs Leda Cooloongup vs Hillman Cooloongup vs East Rockingham

Other comparisons with Rockingham

Rockingham vs Safety Bay Rockingham vs Shoalwater Rockingham vs Hillman Rockingham vs East Rockingham
Full data on Cooloongup Full data on Rockingham
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Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.

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