Since the 1970s, Working Holiday Makers (WHMs) have played an increasingly important role in contributing to the development of rural areas across the world. In Australia, WHMs are bound by visa conditions which incentivise them to travel to rural areas to fill socioeconomic gaps that are left by citizens. Such conditions result in WHMs dwelling in rural areas for long periods of time, and subsequently contributing to rural economies through their spending on local goods and services. These contributions make WHMs highly beneficial to rural areas, particularly those that are not likely to attract other groups of tourists. Despite their benefits to rural economies, WHMs face significant challenges with establishing a sense of belonging in rural areas in Australia. These challenges can influence WHMs’ vulnerability to exploitation and limit their ability to access support services. Existing research has identified that WHMs’ belonging is inhibited by their transient identities (which conflict with the stable and fixed identities of local residents); geographical isolation; and the commonality of practices of racial segregation among contractors who organise WHMs accommodation and employment. Drawing on data from a national survey (n.573) and interviews on WhatsApp (n.11) with working holiday makers in Australia, this paper demonstrates how WHMs’ inability to belong in rural areas is influenced by the pervasiveness of colonial-settler masculinity in some rural areas of Australia. This paper argues that pervasive colonial-masculinity, which is deeply embedded in rural cultural milieus and workplaces, results in WHMs experiencing exclusion, racism, xenophobia, sexism and homophobia. The findings of this research demonstrate that improving WHM belonging in rural areas requires wider efforts to neutralise the pervasive colonial-settler masculinity in rural areas of Australia.