Point Pleasant Beach was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on May 18, 1886, from portions of Brick Township, subject to the results of a referendum passed the previous day.
Point Pleasant Beach is a Jersey Shore community situated on the Barnegat Peninsula, a long, narrow barrier peninsula that divides the Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. The Point Pleasant Beach boardwalk is approximately one mile long, spanning the coastline from the Manasquan Inlet at the north to New Jersey Avenue in the south. The central third of the boardwalk is jam-packed with amusement rides, arcades, pizza joints, ice cream parlors, games-of-chance and miniature golf courses. Point Pleasant Beach is also the northern terminus of the East Coast's Intracoastal Waterway.
It was ranked the eighth best beach in New Jersey in the 2008 Top 10 Beaches Contest sponsored by the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium.
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,314 people, 2,317 households, and 1,316 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,696.0 people per square mile (1,424.8/km²). There were 3,558 housing units at an average density of 2,474.7/sq mi (954.0/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 95.94% White, 0.53% African American, 0.34% Native American, 1.02% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.47% from other races, and 0.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.40% of the population.
There were 2,317 households out of which 22.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.3% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.2% were non-families. 36.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the borough the population was spread out with 19.2% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 101.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.9 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $51,105, and the median income for a family was $61,250. Males had a median income of $40,507 versus $37,500 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $27,853. About 5.0% of families and 6.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.9% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.
New Jersey Transit trains stop at the Point Pleasant Beach station on Arnold Avenue, with service on the North Jersey Coast Line north to Penn Station Newark, Hoboken Terminal, and Penn Station New York in Midtown Manhattan.