Sunshine Coast, QLD
lively · beachy · cosmopolitan · seafood
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Drive to the coast
3 min
By road
Nearest major hospital
18 min
By road
Airport access
19 min
By road
Schools access
Excellent
Average daytime temp
25.5°C
Rainfall
Wet
Mooloolaba is urban coastal living in a compact package: apartments, cafés, restaurants, the beach and visitor traffic all sit close together. Around 8,200 people live here, the median age is 44 and population has grown by about 8% since 2016.
The property market reflects the area’s popularity, with a median house price around $1.85 million and three-bedroom rents near $820 a week. Schools and shopping are excellent, the airport is under 20 minutes away and the nearest major hospital is about the same distance, which makes daily logistics easy.
The waterfront, beach and Wharf precinct mean dining and outdoor time can happen without a long drive, but those same attractions keep tourism heavy. Quiet streets and rural space are scarce, and traffic is part of the deal in busy periods. Warm conditions come with wet, without the cold winters found inland.
Brisbane is roughly 1 hour 25 minutes away, close enough for occasional work or events but not effortless as a daily commute. Mooloolaba suits people who want a social, walkable beach lifestyle and are happy to live somewhere visibly popular. Anyone chasing acreage, anonymity or a small local community will find the density and visitor economy hard to ignore.
12 photos
Dining, walkability, services and the beach all land in the same place at Mooloolaba. Professionals, active couples, families and apartment-oriented households can keep airport access and everyday convenience close. Density, tourism and a busy waterfront are part of daily life, so it is not the place to look for coastal seclusion.
Quiet and community feel are both low, tourism is very high and rural space is minimal. This is not a place for acreage or a small-town feel. The beach is central, but so are apartments, visitors and traffic. People seeking a locally focused coastal community may prefer Avoca Beach or Old Bar.
Swim at Mooloolaba Beach
Eat seafood around the waterfront and The Wharf
Visit SEA LIFE Sunshine Coast
More from Londoner in Sydney
There are some awesome things to do in Mooloolaba that you don’t even need to leave this Sunshine Coast beach town during your entire visit.
Read the guideMedian house price
$1,850,000
100% above the QLD median
Median attached price (townhouse/apartment)
$855,000
Median weekly rent (3-bed house)
$820
≈ $3,553/month
Sourced from Queensland Government Statistician's Office · 12 months ending 31 March 2026
Healthcare access
Good
Shopping & everyday services
Excellent
10+ shopping centres within 20km — a real retail hub
Internet connection
Fixed line
Plus 56 more within 20km — showing the 8 closest.
Job market by industry
Healthcare — 16.7%
Largest share of local jobs
Employment figures cover this town's wider statistical region, not the town alone — you'll see the same figures for Maleny, Noosa, Beerwah, Mapleton, Montville, Nambour and Yandina.
The score ranks this region against other regions for the same occupation, not against other jobs here — a low score means it isn't a regional stronghold for that field, not that there are no vacancies. Counts online job advertisements, so trades and farm work hired by word of mouth are undercounted, and outside capital cities this is published at a regional level larger than one town.
Mooloolaba (SAL 31895) · 2021 Census
The age profile is close to the national one, with 21.6% aged 65 or over against 17.2% and 13.2% children against 18.2%. Among households, couples without children outnumber couples with them (51.4% of families against 30.7%), and renting is well above the national rate, at 41.5% of dwellings against 30.6%. Lone-person households are more common than average (33.2% against 25.6%).
Population
8,202
Population growth
+7.7%
Mooloolaba - Alexandra Headland (SA2 316031428)
Median age
44 years
Labour force participation
59.9%
Growth is measured across the wider area named under the figure, which can be a different size to the town.
Share of total population in each band — rounding means these won't land on exactly 100%.
Couples are a share of total families; lone-person households are a share of total households — different bases, not one breakdown.
Median personal income
$843
Per week · ≈ $43,836/year
Median family income
$2,007
Per week
Median household income
$1,506
Per week
Personal is one person's income; family and household cover everyone living together — a single-income household will show a lower household figure than its highest earner's personal one. Personal income also covers every resident aged 15 and over, retirees included, so it reads low in a town with an older population even where household income is solid.
Owner-occupied
56%
Rented
41.5%
Born in Australia
68.9%
Born overseas
25.5%
Doesn't sum to 100% — people who didn't state a birthplace are excluded rather than redistributed.