It is located 12 kilometres north of the city centre, to the south of the suburbs of Pinehill and Albany.

"[8] Newspaper articles from the 1890s show that there was a Rosedale estate in the Albany area owned by the Stevenson family, where an orchard was cultivated.

[9][10] The suburb is home to the Rosedale Wastewater Treatment Plant, the second largest sewage works in Auckland.

The plant was initially opened in 1962, and now processes the wastewater of an estimated 253,000 inhabitants, servicing the area of the North Shore from Devonport to Long Bay.

[11] A notable feature of the area is Rosedale Dam, containing treated wastewater fed from the sewage works.

[12] Rosedale is also known for the large general refuse landfill that operated from the 1950s to 2009, accepting only clean fill from 2002 to 2008.

The area is now the Rosedale Landfill Reserve and public access is prohibited due to toxic gas and liquid run off.

[14] The suburb remains a hub for refuse services with a Waste Management transfer station operating adjacent to the bottom of the former landfill site on Rosedale Road.

A large Envirowaste transfer and recycling facility is also located in the suburb on Constellation Drive.