It is situated just west of the A15 road, 2 miles (3 km) south from the town of Bourne, and on the edge of the Lincolnshire Fens.

The railway workers cottages 3 to 9 Station Road, built in 1866 are nearly the oldest properties in the village, they were famously hit by an air bus in the 1920s.

The parish includes Northorpe, which is continuous with Thurlby, and the outlying hamlets of Obthorpe and Kate's Bridge.

The nearest railway stations are situated at either Stamford and Peterborough, with both hosting regular scheduled services to London King's Cross and Birmingham, and Peterborough additionally connecting to other destinations throughout the UK, such as Norwich, Cambridge, Edinburgh, York, Newcastle, Lincoln, Nottingham and Doncaster.

The village has a modern primary school sharing a site with the community hall and Lawrance Park.