Find a roommate in Perth and/or read everything about roommates in Perth.

Who's your best roommate in Perth?

Who'll pay more rent?

What's affordable in SPRING 2025?

• (?-see footnote)  =  non-traditional average ¹
• 1500 (375 per week)  =  traditional 2BR ÷ 2 ²
• 2400 (600 per week)  =  average 1BR, rented solo ³
• the rest of Australia
• Some errands can be accomplished on foot. ⁴
• sunburn, dehydration, swarms of flies, most isolated city on Earth
• beautiful white sand beaches, gorgeous parks, excellent public transport, most isolated city on Earth
• touristy beaches, best beach in the world, millionnaires, Golden Triangle, So. Many. Wantrepreneurs, beautiful park, rich old houses OR druggy apartments, rich renovator island, the only taco bell, heritage rail addicts, solar ferry station, the fairy ferry, asian students, and Mullets, Curtains & Vaping are the largest hoodmap tags ⁵

roomiematch.com's Perth roommate rundown:

Perth is often described as the most isolated city on Earth.

Perthians are completely surrounded by amazing natural beauty with coastline as far as their eyes can see . . . just not other Australians. Or any other humans in any large city for > 1300 miles.

They're surrounded by natural beauty with amazing views of coastline almost everywhere in Perth because Perth is almost entirely coastline until you hit the Indian Ocean or The Outback.

So it makes sense that life in Perth revolves around the outdoors, year round.

Almost all of Perth loves to rise with the sun. They'll have a coffee and walk the dog then head to brunch at an outdoor cafe . . . then on to their next outdoor activity. Possibly surfing or surfing adjacent?

Not much late night club going. More like brunch going followed by early evening cafe going, then going home to get up early to go outdoors again! With another coffee!

While the beauty and the coffee are undeniable, so are the bugs. Particularly the giant flies and mosquitoes. Basically, if you ever wear insect repellent, you'll need to continue doing so in Perth, probably year round.

Also, don't break down in your car. Meaning, most would recommend avoiding breaking down anywhere in Perth on any hot day (most days) if remotely possible. Australia in general is best experienced only driving extremely reliable cars or not driving cars at all.

If your more adventurous roommates want to go exploring just a bit outside Perth, check out Rottnest Island. You could have fun all day with the quokkas, then watch the sun set over the ocean.

But most Perthians would recommend you avoid "adventuring" The Outback. Yes, it is weird that hardly anyone lives in 95% of Australia including most of Western Australia, but that's because if you venture out there you'll immediately sunburn and dehydrate while swarms of bush flies surround your face. Right after that you'll be bitten by several spiders and two or three different venomous snakes.

Then whatever's left of you will be snapped in two in the jaws of an enormous crocodile!

And that's all within 20 minutes after your car breaks down.

Well, maybe not all at once (unless you REALLY panic), but all has happened to many because it really is that dangerous out in the Australian bush. If you don't know what you're doing, don't tempt fate.

Stay inside Perth and enjoy the beautiful beaches and gorgeous parks or (if you're feeling indoorsy) the stunning indoor views of those beautiful beaches and gorgeous parks instead.

You and your roommates also shouldn't miss the native black swans, local truffles and Western Rock Lobsters. Immediately outside Perth are many vineyards with tasting tours that would love to meet you and your roommates as well.

But please enjoy while completely loaded down with water, sunscreen, and insect repellent.

And from behind your large-brimmed hat and sunglasses.

The rest of the Perth roommate lowdown:

• capital city of Western Australia, with a population approximately 2.3 million
• considered one of the world's most isolated and remote cities, as the nearest next city with a population over a million is Sydney, over 1300 miles away
• Perth is not nearly as densely populated as cities tend to be, with a similar geographic size to London, but only about one third their population. This gives Perth a "suburban" feel throughout the city, even though it literally is not a suburb, but a large metro.
• Summers are from December to March, mostly hot and dry with occasional thunderstorms. Perth is Australia's sunniest capital city, with an average of almost 9 hours of sunshine daily. The UV is some of the worst in the world. Many newbies didn't believe until their first serious sunburn. Don't be like them. Perth needs you to wear sunscreen.
• winters are mild but rainy, snow and frost are rare
• Perth features some of Australia's best beaches. While the water is ideal for swimming much of the year, natives very strongly advise that you stay between the flags or patrolled areas and follow the safety recommendations.
• According to Noongar (Nyungar) Australian Aboriginal tradition and archaeological evidence, humans have lived in Perth since the beginning of humanity.
• Newcomers should remember Australians drive on the left. Speed limits are displayed in kilometers.
• Perth public transport is Transperth, and includes trains, ferries, and buses. There's a "Free Transit Zone" in the inner city that's zero fare. While Perth's investment in transit has been substantial, since everything is relatively spread out, most folks will probably still prefer owning a car and/or riding a bike versus relying entirely on Transperth.
  
  As it is patrolled by transit guards, the various parts including the buses are generally safe. But if you must travel at night by yourself, it's never a bad idea to sit near the driver.
• Perth proudly features some of the best bicycle civic engineering in Australia, with cycle routes throughout the city. Maps are available all over, and bicycles are allowed on Transperth during off peak hours.
  
  However, due to the very warm weather and the city's spread out geography, you'll probably want to incorporate Transperth and/or a reliable vehicle in your transportation plan too. Unless you're the most serious bike warrior or plan to stay entirely within the smaller downtown center, bicycle-only may not be enjoyable for most.
• low crime rate, particularly for a city this large
• Perth is home to four public universities: the University of Western Australia, Curtin University, Murdoch University and Edith Cowan University. Also the University of Notre Dame Australia and the University of Divinity.
• The state of Western Australia celebrates some of its own holidays including Western Australia Day.
• Football, or Australian Rules Football, or footy, is popular, with an abundance of leagues and clubs. Outdoor team sports are extra popular here due to the friendly climate. Football leagues are extremely numerous, and cricket, basketball, rugby, and soccer are popular as well.
• Kangaroos are usually wandering around several parks and a few golf courses. Many Perthians appreciate their beauty and grace.
• But if you're a kangaroo-appreciating newbie . . . know they're also on many menus.

After you're settled down, you and your roommates should experience Perth's:

• Perth International Arts Festival (the Perth Festival, the Festival of Perth): Australia's oldest international arts festival, running since 1953. It involves several weeks at multiple indoor and outdoor locations and features contemporary and traditional music, dance, literature, theater, visual arts, spoken performance, and larger scale works.
• Sculpture by the Sea: Australia's oldest outdoor sculpture exhibition, since 1997. Over a hundred local artists draw hundreds of thousands of people to Cottlesloe Beach.
• Fremantle: Historic port, where Perth got started. Now including many food and entertainment options, many within walking distance that you and your roommates could explore including markets, Fremantle Prison, the Maritime Museum, and the statue of Bon Scott from AC/DC.
• Rottnest Island: Island off the coast with only a few hundred residents . . . not including the ten thousand plus quokkas. About half a million tourists per year come just to visit these tiny marsupials. Quokkas were previously mistaken for rats with the island as their "nest." You can get there by ferry then bike around the island. Cars are not allowed.
• Swan River is Perth's largest, named for their native black swans. You can also bike along the mostly flat but very scenic bike path.
• Kings Park and Botanic Garden: Almost 1000 acres inside their inner city business district. Cottesloe Beach is one of the world's most popular urban beaches.
• Nambung National Park: About two hours north, featuring The Pinnacles, thousands of eerily mysterious limestone formations
• Aquarium of Western Australia: Australia's largest, specializing in the marine life of their western coast
• Art Gallery of Western Australia: > 18,000 works overall. In addition to the rest of Western Australia, particularly known for collections of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artwork.

Here's the city of Perth's official page for new residents, including events, neighborhoods, elected council members, and community safety.

Notes

1.   The following two paragraphs are what this note says for cities in the United States and Canada, but we can't provide this number for cities in Australia yet because we've only recently added them. We will provide this number when we have more data.

(Not Applicable Yet: The non-traditional roommate rent average for this city we've experienced over the last 3 years. We can't predict future rental availability, because we're neither in control of any rental market nor psychic, sorry!

But in most cities most of the time, the recent and relatively recent past are the best predictors.)

2.   This idea came from smartasset.com's ranking of what a roommate saves you in 50 cities. They ranked where roommates will save you the most money, based on the average cost of a 1BR as opposed to a 2BR ÷ 2. Unsurprisingly, the more expensive the city, the more you can save, but the savings are significant in all larger metros. So we got the data for the rest of our cities from realestate.com.au.

This is really the minimum you could save, as you could live with more than one roommate, split more services, share food or other supplies, etc. More sharing tends to lead to more savings too, as per our roommate roadmap.

As per the rest of the description at the top of this page, we're calling this "traditional" roommate rent.

3.   From realestate.com.au.

4.   Directly quoted from Walk Score's Cities and Neighborhoods Ranking. They've ranked "more than 2,800 cities and over 10,000 neighborhoods so you can find a walkable home or apartment."

5.   From hoodmaps.com: a collaborative map where residents use tags describing social situations you're likely to find. Other users can thumb up or down, so the largest tags have been thumbed up the most.