The settlement takes its name from a rounded volcanic peak of the same name (a Maori name meaning "meeting house by the mountain") that lies to the southwest, and has a summit 359 metres above sea level.

Thomas Elmsley bought 60,000 acres (24,000 ha) of land in Maungatapere and northern Wairoa from Te Tirarau Kukupa in 1839.

The next year he and the brothers Henry and Charles Walton brought workers to establish farms in the area.

[5] After the Flagstaff War, Walton employed former soldiers to build stone walls which are still a feature of the area.

Statistics New Zealand describes Maungatāpere as a rural settlement.

The results were 82.2% European (Pākehā), 32.7% Māori, 2.8% Pasifika, 5.6% Asian, and 3.7% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander".

The percentage of people born overseas was 15.0, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Of those at least 15 years old, 36 (14.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 138 (55.4%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 63 (25.3%) people exclusively held high school qualifications.

The results were 89.4% European (Pākehā); 20.1% Māori; 2.5% Pasifika; 3.3% Asian; 0.5% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.8% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander".

Of those at least 15 years old, 462 (15.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,749 (59.5%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 570 (19.4%) people exclusively held high school qualifications.