[3] The community is located 11.3 miles northeast of the city of Hudson on New York Route 66.

Ghent was originally the site of a Mahican Native American village known as Squampamock, Scom-pa-muck or Squampanoc.

[4] Ghent is located in the northeast part of the town of Ghent at 42°19′45″N 73°36′59″W / 42.32917°N 73.61639°W / 42.32917; -73.61639 (42.329228, -73.616596),[5] bordered on the north by Kline Kill, a stream which flows north to Kinderhook Creek, a tributary of the Hudson River.

New York State Route 66 passes through Ghent, leading southwest 11 miles (18 km) to Hudson, the Columbia County seat, and northeast 2.5 miles (4.0 km) to Chatham.

None of the families and 5.24% of the population were living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 7.5% of those age 35 to 64.