Cockapoos have become popular because they generally combine the outgoing, loving personality of the cocker spaniel with the low-shedding, low-dander qualities of the poodle. The poodle parent also contributes intelligence and a tendency to be very active, resulting in a loving, intelligent, energetic and agile dog that sheds very little. The cockapoo is a very people oriented, with a clown like personality. They are easy to train and work well as a children's dog.

Strictly speaking, the cockapoo cannot be described as a purebred because it does not 'breed true'. In breeders' terms, 'breeding true' means that the pups will have more consistently predictable characteristics, and will resemble both their parents, rather than exhibiting the varying characteristics of the dog breeds in their ancestries.

Cockapoos, however, may inherit the characteristics of either or both their parent breeds. While some cockapoos appear more similar to cocker spaniels, others will exhibit more poodle traits, creating a variation in cockapoo appearance and temperament. Cockapoo size and weight are a function of what type of dogs the parents were. Breeders usually use a toy or miniature poodle as the poodle parent.