The antimicrobial, anticancer, and antioxidant activities of four cobalt (III) complexes, [CoL2]X (X = ClO4¯ (1); OAc¯ (2), Cl¯ (3), or NO3¯ (4) with hydralazine Schiff base derivative (HL), were presented. The structure of the newly synthesized complexes 1 and 2 was confirmed utilizing FTIR, UV‐Vis, and NMR (1H and 13C) spectroscopy. In addition, single crystal X‐ray diffraction was used to approve the structure of complex 1. Based on Hirshfeld analysis, the molecular packing of 1 is controlled by short HH, OH, NH, and HC(π) interactions. The results of the X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for the Co (III) complexes revealed the characteristic peaks of Co2p3/2 and Co2p1/2 with binding energy differences of 14.85–14.96 which greatly approved that the Co (III) complexes have been assembled successfully. Complex 4 (IC50 = 14.97 ± 0.59 μg/ml) has the highest cytotoxicity against lung carcinoma A‐549 cell line compared to the rest of the Co (III) complexes and the free ligand as well. Also, complex 4 has the best antioxidant activity with IC50 of 283.4 ± 12.3 μg/ml. The free ligand has broad spectrum of antibacterial and antifungal actions, while the studied Co (III) complexes have good antibacterial activity especially the chloride complex 3.