Alberton is described as a typical suburban community, one which is primarily residential in character, with most of its workers commuting to work in nearby suburbs or cities such as Johannesburg and Germiston.

In the early 1840s, the Voortrekkers Johan Georg (Org) Meyer and Hester Catharina Elizabeth (née Mulder) arrived in the Transvaal after moving from their home in Prince Albert, in what was then the Cape Colony.

General Hendrik Abraham Alberts, a veteran of the Anglo Boer War, purchased a part of the farm from Org in 1904 and named it Alberton.

During the apartheid era, inhabitants were moved to the surrounding black townships and a 'white' suburb was established around the dam and named Verwoerdpark, after former prime minister Hendrik Verwoerd.

Until the mid-seventies, CJ Fuchs (Pty) Ltd would continue to grow into a multi-million Rand operation, employing thousands of people in several subsidiary companies within the group.

The R59 Sybrand van Niekerk Freeway is the main highway running through Alberton, separating its western suburbs of Brackenhurst, Brackendowns and Meyersdal from the rest of the town.

The N12 Southern Bypass Freeway runs north of Alberton connecting the town with Potchefstroom to the south-west and with Benoni and eMalahleni to the north-east.

Alberton borders on the Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve, located on Peggy Vera Road, Kibler Park, Gauteng (26°18′13″S 28°0′39″E).

This reserve is home to many wild animals, including zebra, red hartebeest, porcupines, black wildebeest, otters, blesbok, springbok, duiker and 170 bird species.