Labradoodle Price in Australia: $3,000 to $4,400

Where did the Labradoodle come from?

Victoria. The ABC reports that in 1989 Wally Conron, then breeding manager of the Royal Guide Dogs Association of Australia (now Guide Dogs Victoria), crossed a Labrador with a Standard Poodle for a blind woman in Hawaii whose husband was allergic to dog hair, hoping to produce a guide dog he would not react to. Two University of Sydney geneticists, writing in The Conversation, give the same origin. The name caught on fast. The ABC quotes Conron calling it a gimmick, “Same dog, different name”, and reports that he came to regret starting the craze for crossbreeds.

From that first cross, two different dogs grew. Which one a seller means matters more than anything else in this guide.

Labrador x Poodle or Australian Labradoodle: what is the difference?

The Australian Labradoodle Association (ALA), formed in 1998, says the Australian Labradoodle “was not just a Labrador x Poodle cross but was a breed in its own right developed over many years”. It describes it as “a mature crossbreed bred with a purpose and to a consistent type”. That is the association's own claim; Dogs Australia does not recognise the Australian Labradoodle as a breed.

Association details from the ALA's own website, read 9 November 2026. Other Labradoodle associations exist, some based overseas; check any membership claim in that association's own directory.

Genetics backs part of the story. The University of Sydney researchers in The Conversation report that Australian Labradoodles turned out to be more Poodle than Labrador in their DNA, and explain that in multi-generation crosses a puppy that inherits no copies of the Poodle coat genes will have a Labrador coat.

Why can't a Dogs Australia breeder sell you a Labradoodle?

Because the state canine bodies forbid their members from crossbreeding. Dogs Victoria's code, for example, says dogs “are not permitted to be mated to a dog or bitch of a different breed, to a cross bred dog or bitch”. So Labradoodle breeders sit outside the Dogs Australia system. Dogs Australia says other registries are not affiliated with it and cannot issue certified pedigrees. An association like the ALA can still set and enforce its own rules for its members, and those rules are worth knowing.

Which health tests should a Labradoodle breeder show you?

Hips, elbows and DNA results on both parents. The ALA says its breeders “are mandated to test hips, elbows and DNA for disease profiling of all breeding dogs”, and that it will not register dogs for breeding that miss its hip and elbow cut-off scores. On its breeding strategies page it says it was the first breed association to make DNA testing for PRA-prcd (an inherited blindness) compulsory, and that breeders must screen hips and elbows using PennHIP, the Australian Veterinary Association scheme or the OFA.

Tests from the ALA's website and its rules (updated December 2025), read 9 November 2026. A buying checklist, not veterinary advice.

For a first-cross Lab x Poodle from a breeder outside any association, ask for the same results on both purebred parents; nobody else will have checked. Our Labradoodle health guide explains each condition and what to watch for once your dog is home.

What does a Labradoodle puppy cost?

Labradoodle association members publish prices more often than most purebred breeders. In November 2026 we read the websites of breeders listed in the Australian Labradoodle Association directory and found 11 that published a price for a pet puppy, in NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria. Taking each breeder's lowest pet price, the range was $3,000 to $4,400 and the median $3,900. Ten of the 11 started at $3,750 or more; the one lower figure is a breeder that prices low-shedding pups at $3,000 and non-shedding pups at $4,400.

Breeder prices as published on each member breeder's own website; rescue fees as published by each rescue. A reference, not a quote: prices change, some include GST and some do not, so confirm what is included before you budget.

Read the inclusions closely. The ALA says puppies from its breeders should be microchipped, desexed or on a desexing contract, wormed and vaccinated, with a health guarantee and ALA registration. Most member breeders we read send puppies home on a desexing contract, which means you pay the vet for desexing later; only a couple quote a price for a puppy already desexed. A rescue fee normally includes desexing. Then run the first year, including a clip every few weeks, through the dog cost calculator.

We have not quoted a price for first-cross Lab x Poodle puppies from breeders outside any association. Those sellers set their own prices with no published benchmark, and a figure on a listing site is one seller's asking price.

Are Labradoodles hypoallergenic?

No dog is. The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) says: “All dog breeds cause allergies, although some do not shed as much dander, and therefore less allergen is spread.” It also says up to 50% of people allergic to animals do not get symptoms straight away, so a short meeting can give a false all clear.

The Labradoodle has been tested directly. A 2012 Dutch study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology measured the main dog allergen in coat samples and found levels in Labradoodles and other so-called hypoallergenic breeds were higher, not lower, than in Labradors and ordinary dogs. Airborne levels did not differ, and floor dust in Labradoodle homes had less allergen, but the authors found “no evidence” for calling any breed hypoallergenic. A low-shedding coat may help some people with housework; it is not a medical guarantee. If anyone at home has asthma or a dog allergy, see a doctor first. Our guides to hypoallergenic dogs in Australia and dogs that don't shed cover how to test a specific dog.

What do Labradoodles in rescue look like?

Mostly young adults and adults, plus the occasional puppy. Across the rescues we aggregate, Labradoodles and Lab-Poodle crosses are listed under several names (Labradoodle, Labrador x Poodle, Poodle cross) and are often surrendered when owners find the size, energy or grooming more than they expected. They are popular, so they tend to be adopted quickly. Set an alert on the breed page, and widen your search to other Poodle crosses through the low-shedding listings for your city.

There is a second route for Australian Labradoodles. The ALA's rehoming page lists older Labradoodles from its breeders that need a new home, and the association says its breeders must help rehome any dog they bred whenever asked. An adopted adult shows you its coat, size and temperament before you commit, which matters more for a cross than for any purebred.

How do Labradoodle scams work, and how do you check a seller?

Scamwatch warns that scammers set up fake websites and social media and marketplace profiles for popular breeds that do not exist, and that a very cheap pet is likely a scam. A Dogs Victoria fact sheet says popular breeds and Poodle mixes feature commonly in scam ads, and that fake ads may show microchip, source or membership numbers lifted from legitimate breeders. With published association prices in the thousands, a Labradoodle offered for a fraction of that is a red flag.

1. The state number. A breeder identification number in NSW, a Pet Exchange Register source number in Victoria, a supply number in Queensland. Look it up on the official register and confirm it matches the seller and the microchip. Our puppies for sale guide covers every state.
2. The association claim. If a seller says it is an Australian Labradoodle Association member, find it in the ALA's breeder directory, which lists each breeder's member number and state breeder number.
3. Both parents and their results. Meet the mother, ask about the father, and see the hip, elbow and DNA certificates. Dogs Australia suggests asking whether your vet can check a puppy before you buy, which is good advice for any breeder.
4. No bank transfers to strangers. Pay only once you have seen the puppy, by a method that gives you some protection.

Should you adopt or buy a Labradoodle?

Adopt if you can be flexible about age: an adult Labradoodle from a rescue costs a published fee, arrives desexed and vet checked, and has a coat you can see and an allergy response you can test before you commit. Buy if you need a puppy, and if you do, an Australian Labradoodle Association member breeder gives you published prices and mandatory health testing that a breeder outside any association does not have to provide. Whichever route, check the state breeder number yourself.

If what you really want is a predictable size and coat, the purebred Poodle has a breed standard and Dogs Australia registered breeders; see our Poodle health guide. Comparing crosses? Read the Spoodle, Cavoodle and Groodle guides, or try the what dog breed am I quiz and the adoption readiness check.

Find a Labradoodle near you

Each page shows Labradoodles listed right now by rescues in that city, and each listing links to the rescue where you apply directly.

• Labradoodles for adoption in Sydney
• Labradoodles for adoption in Melbourne
• Labradoodles for adoption in Brisbane
• Labradoodles for adoption in Perth
• Labradoodles for adoption in Adelaide

Low-shedding dogs of every type, listed by city: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide.

Local Labradoodle adoption guides: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Perth, Adelaide.