Shirley is a census-designated place (CDP) comprising the main village in the town of Shirley in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States.

It is bordered to the east by the Devens regional enterprise zone and to the south by the town of Lancaster in Worcester County.

The western edge of the CDP follows Bow Brook, a tributary of Catacoonamug Brook, which flows through the village center and joins the Nashua River in Devens.

[1] As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 1,427 people, 632 households, and 343 families residing in the CDP.

38.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.