Previously part of Ef'al Regional Council, in 2007 it was transferred to the municipality of Ramat Gan together with Kfar Azar.

Ef'al was planned as an urban kibbutz, but due to high real-estate prices it was established on 250 dunams of agricultural land purchased by the Jewish National Fund near Kfar Azar.

The split in the HaKibbutz HaMeuhad movement was a further blow to the kibbutz, and departing residents left it weakened.

During the First Intifada, In 1992, Following a high-speed chase, three would-be Hamas suicide bombers were arrested by police forces in Ramat Ef'al.

During interrogation of the three arrested suspects, Israeli security forces learned the name of the bomb planner - Yahya Ayyash, also known as The Engineer.