Located near Raritan Bay in the Raritan Valley region, the township is a regional commercial hub of Central Jersey, home to Bell Labs and PNC Bank Arts Center, and a bedroom community of New York City in the New York Metropolitan Area.

Important evidence for the Big Bang was discovered using the Holmdel Horn Antenna at a Bell Labs facility by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson, both of whom won the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work here.

[27] In addition, former U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu earned a Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on laser cooling in Holmdel.

[28] Holmdel's picturesque beauty, proximity to New York City, and main highways, award-winning public schools, large homes, rich history, the PNC Bank Arts Center, and the presence of many high paying jobs within commuting distance led the township to be ranked the #1 "Six-Figure Town" by Money magazine and CNN for 2009.

[34][24] The earliest work on radio astronomy was conducted by Bell Labs engineer Karl Guthe Jansky in 1931 in Holmdel.

[35][36][37] In 1964, Arno Penzias and Robert Woodrow Wilson of Bell Labs discovered evidence for cosmic microwave background radiation while performing research with the Holmdel Horn Antenna, earning them the Nobel Prize in Physics.

[38] The PNC Bank Arts Center is a 10,800-seat outdoor amphitheatre concert venue located in Holmdel.

[43] In 1977, Bruce Springsteen wrote and recorded many of his songs from his album Darkness on the Edge of Town in an old farmhouse in Holmdel.

[44] VoIP provider Vonage Holdings, Inc., relocated its world headquarters from Edison to Holmdel in November 2005, occupying the building that formerly housed Prudential Property Casualty & Insurance.

Crawford Hill, located at 40°23′25″N 74°11′02″W / 40.3904°N 74.1840°W / 40.3904; -74.1840 (40.3904, −74.1840),[46] is Monmouth County's highest point, standing 391 feet (119 m) above sea level.

[59][60] Musical groups from Holmdel Township include Granian, a band formed by musician Garen Guyikian.

The Township Committee exercises control over the conduct of municipal business by means of legislation through ordinances or resolutions, approval and adoption of the annual budget and the formulation of policy to be carried out by the staff.

[3][70][71][72][73] In November 2021, voters approved the establishment of a Charter Study Commission that would review the township's options for changing its form of government and would make recommendations to be considered by the public.

[76] Led by opposition from Monmouth County Republicans, voters rejected the proposed changes in July 2022 by a 55–45% margin.

[78][79] Deputy Mayor Serena DiMaso left office in January 2012 to fill the vacant seat of Robert D. Clifton on the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

[84][85][86] Prior to the 2010 Census, Holmdel Township had been part of the 12th Congressional District, a change made by the New Jersey Redistricting Commission that took effect in January 2013, based on the results of the November 2012 general elections.

[87] For the 119th United States Congress, New Jersey's 3rd congressional district is currently represented Herb Conaway (D, Delran Township).

[126] Holmdel High School became the center of a scandal due to a hazing incident at a football camp in 1988 that was reported in the press and received considerable notoriety.

Founded in 1969, the squad responds to an average of 1,500 calls each year, with no charge for medical services or transportation.

[136] The nearest train stops to the township are located at Aberdeen-Matawan, Hazlet, and Middletown, all along the NJ Transit's North Jersey Coast Line to Hoboken Terminal, Newark's Penn Station, and New York's Penn Station.

[139] The ferry service also offers seasonal travel, such as to the public beaches on Sandy Hook, baseball games at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field, trips to Broadway matinees, Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts, college football games at West Point, fall foliage in the Hudson Valley, and to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, among other excursions.

Serving the greater Raritan Bayshore region,[141] the hospital is a partner of Hackensack Meridian Health and is affiliated with Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

[142][143] The facility has 169 beds and currently offers cardiac catheterization, diagnostic Imaging, medical/surgical, behavioral health, emergency, laboratory and transitional care.

[144] Other regional hospitals near the township include Riverview Medical Center in nearby Red Bank and Raritan Bay Medical Center, with divisions in Perth Amboy and Old Bridge, both hospitals are also part of Hackensack Meridian.

Originally founded in New York City in 1884, it is the oldest cancer treatment and research center in the world.