The suburb adjoins 2 major arterial roadsCanning Highway and the Kwinana Freewayand is in the Town of South Perth local govt area.

South Perth is a pricey area for land due to its location close to the stream and central financial area. Subsequently , there are a relatively high number of highrise studio towers in the suburb, sometimes close to the foreshore. There are a number of massive mansions. Major numbers of townhouses and some older homes fill out the suburb. The history of the area now known as South Perth before permanent European settlement was broadly like that in other bits of what became the Swan Stream Colony.

The area was potentially inhabited by races of the Noongar clans, and they'd tiny contact with other races. No contact is understood to have once been made with visitors from any other country. The Dutch expedition commanded by Willem de Vlaming in 1697 was first to discover the major brook and note the presence of black swans on the stream. The area was unofficially known as "South Perth" but was comparatively untouched. By 1831, the land along the brook frontage had been allotted among 7 folks, and the land was being partly utilised for farming and dairy farms.

A mill was built in 1833 and a ferry across the Swan stream through the Narrows was established. There had been some conflict between the Western european settlers and Native Australians, in which one of the leaders was a chief known as Yagan. After his demise, local leadership went to a chief variously known as Galute or Kalyute. By the 1850s, there had been some further development of the area, with more ferry connections and the development of the Causeway and the Canning Bridge. The area was further surveyed and lots allotted to OAPs. By 1858, the area was officially marked on maps as "South Perth" and some roads had been built.

The 1860s saw the realization that sizeable farming in the district had no future, though dairying, timber cutting and plant growing continued. By the 1880s, a number of Chinese gardeners had arrived and they set up market gardens on land on the foreshore, between Suburban Road ( now Mill Point Road ) and the Swan Stream . The Chinese worked terribly hard and grew top quality fruit and veggies, that the local population were content to purchase. It was not till the 1920s the Chinese started to market their produce to the broader population of Perth thru the James Street markets. With the assistance of convict labour, the district received more settlement and better roads. However , the South Perth area still had a tiny population.

The property boom of the 1880s, which coincided with the discovery of gold in the Kimberley saw a slow but discernible expansion in the amount of residents. The Zoological Gardens and the Royal Perth club were opened in 1898 and the area became well liked by travellers from the city of Perth across the stream. The Perth Zoo is found in the suburb of South Perth. It is open each day of the year and its exhibits include Australian wildlife, as well as exotic and rare animal species. It opens from nine am to five pm daily with extra hours during summer and special events.