Sunshine Coast vs Western Australia: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Western Australia edges ahead of Sunshine Coast on higher occupancy (42% vs 30%).

Head-to-head metrics

	Sunshine Coast	Western Australia
Median occupancy	30%	42%
Median daily rate	£166	£110
Median RevPAR	£29	£25
Active listings	5,416	10,674
YoY occupancy	+11.9 pts	+19 pts
YoY daily rate	+8.5%	+3.3%
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Sunshine Coast vs Western Australia

Western Australia finishes clearly ahead of Sunshine Coast on our composite of occupancy, revenue per available night and regulation risk — and it is the calendar rather than the price tag doing the work. Western Australia sells 12 more points of its calendar — 42% median occupancy against 30% in Sunshine Coast. The twelve-month direction favours Western Australia too: occupancy there moved +19 points while Sunshine Coast moved +11.9 points. Those gaps are wide enough to survive a normal year's variance.

The two markets reach their revenue by different routes, which is what makes this pairing worth reading rather than just tabulating. Sunshine Coast is the rate market: £166 a night against £110, some 50.7% more, but it converts fewer of those nights at 30% occupancy. Western Australia is the volume market, filling 42% of its calendar at a lower headline price. Revenue per available night settles it: £29 in Sunshine Coast against £25. Rate is what you advertise; RevPAR is what you bank.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Sunshine Coast is not simply the weaker market of the two. Sunshine Coast commands 50.7% more per night, £166 against £110. Across a full year the median Sunshine Coast listing grosses £10,704 against £9,226 in Western Australia. If your model leans on nightly rate rather than volume, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

Neither Sunshine Coast nor Western Australia currently has a verified short-term rental regulation record in our register, so the comparison above is a yield comparison only. Regulation is the single largest source of downside in this asset class — an unverified market is an unpriced risk, not an absent one.

The two calendars also behave differently. Sunshine Coast peaks in October at 62.1% and bottoms in March at 35%; Western Australia runs from 53.6% in June down to 33.8% in September. Western Australia is the steadier of the two at 19.8 points peak-to-trough against 27.1 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while Sunshine Coast concentrates its return into a shorter window and rewards operators who price the peak aggressively instead of holding a flat rate all year.

Who each suits, then. Sunshine Coast suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry and who can hold rate through the shoulder season rather than discounting to fill the calendar. Western Australia answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal: it is the market for an owner whose economics survive high turnover — more bookings, more cleans, more guest contact per pound of revenue. It is also the momentum side of this pair. Every figure above comes from the same Inside Airbnb snapshot pipeline on both sides, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 3,542 active Sunshine Coast listings and 5,885 in Western Australia.

Frequently asked questions

Is Sunshine Coast or Western Australia better for Airbnb investment?

Western Australia, on the data we track. It leads on higher occupancy (42% vs 30%), the better occupancy trend (+19 points vs +11.9 points year over year), and a deeper market (10,674 vs 5,416 active listings). Sunshine Coast is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a higher nightly rate (£166 vs £110).

Which has higher occupancy, Sunshine Coast or Western Australia?

Western Australia, at 42% median occupancy against 30% in Sunshine Coast — a gap of 12 points. That is a wide spread by short-term rental standards and usually reflects a structural demand difference rather than better hosting. Over the last twelve months Sunshine Coast gained 11.9 points and Western Australia gained 19 points, so the gap is widening.

Which has higher nightly rates, Sunshine Coast or Western Australia?

Sunshine Coast, at £166 a night against £110 in Western Australia — roughly 50.7% more. Revenue per available night agrees rather than contradicts: £29 in Sunshine Coast against £25, so the rate premium survives contact with the occupancy figures.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, Sunshine Coast or Western Australia?

Western Australia, on occupancy: +19 points over the last twelve months against +11.9 points in Sunshine Coast. Nightly rates rose 8.5% in Sunshine Coast and rose 3.3% in Western Australia over the same window. One year of movement is a direction, not a trend — weigh it against the regulation picture before treating it as momentum.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, Sunshine Coast or Western Australia?

Western Australia, with 10,674 active listings against 5,416 in Sunshine Coast. Size cuts both ways: a deep market gives you comparables, contractors and an exit, while a thinner one means fewer near-identical rivals competing for the same search results.

How much can you earn from an Airbnb in Sunshine Coast vs Western Australia?

Sunshine Coast earns more: roughly £10,704 a year for a median listing against £9,226 in Western Australia. Those are gross booking revenues before cleaning, management, platform fees, furnishing amortisation and tax — budget for a meaningful share of them, and note that a median listing is a median operator, not a good one.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Sunshine Coast →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Western Australia →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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