It makes up the southern edge of the town, separated from neighbouring Formby by RAF Woodvale.

Prior to the British Agricultural Revolution fields and farms in the locality were small and land was enclosed.

The 1841 Census listed 176 inhabitants in 33 houses with occupations of farmer, agricultural labourers and servants.

The row of houses over the road from the Sands Hotel were originally railway staff cottages for that line.

[9] On 16 March 1926, Sir Henry Segrave set his first land speed record of 152.33 miles per hour (245.15 km/h) using Ladybird, a 4-litre Sunbeam Tiger on Ainsdale beach.

Parry-Thomas driving Babs, a custom-built car with a 27-litre 450 hp (340 kW) V12 Liberty aero engine.

[10] As of May 2023, they were Janet Harrison (Labour), Lynne Thompson (Liberal Democrat) and Tony Brough (Conservative).

[13] Ainsdale boating lake, along with the beach itself, were popular tourist attractions, and thus Lakeside Hotel (now known as The Sands) was built to accommodate those wishing to stay in the area.

The locality is served by Ainsdale railway station, which is situated on the Northern Line of the Merseyrail network, linking Southport to Liverpool.

Frequent bus services passing through Ainsdale are provided by Arriva North West, including: • 44/44A Crossens - Formby • 47 Crossens - Liverpool (20 minutes weekday daytime, less frequent evenings) • 49 Crossens - Woodvale (12 minutes daytime, half-hourly evenings, slightly less frequent daytime on Sundays) Stagecoach provides the X2, running from Preston through Tarleton, Banks, Southport, Birkdale, Ainsdale, Formby, Crosby and Bootle before finishing in Liverpool (half-hourly weekday daytime, restricted in evenings, early finish Sundays).

These trails allow access to the Ainsdale Sand Dunes, designated as one of the national nature reserves in England.