Brunswick County coast
Ocean Isle Beach
About five low-rise miles of Brunswick County sand between Sunset Beach and Holden Beach.
Last updated October 15, 2026.
- County
- Brunswick
- Setting
- Barrier island between Tubbs Inlet and Shallotte Inlet, plus a mainland approach
- Elevation
- Sea level
- Incorporated
- 1959
- 2020 census
- 867
Ocean Isle Beach is a small Brunswick County town on a barrier island. Atlantic out front. The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway out back, all marsh and boat wake. A bridge is the grown-up way on. The town limits also snag a mainland slice along N.C. 904.
It was incorporated in 1959. The 2020 census counted 867 residents. Summer renters blow past that number before the first cooler hits the deck.
The oceanfront runs about five miles. Tubbs Inlet sits west, toward Sunset Beach. Shallotte Inlet sits east, toward Holden Beach. Houses stay low. The Ocean Isle Beach Fishing Pier is how you point and say 'we are here' without waving at the whole ocean. On-island shops are a short strip. Shallotte, inland, is the grocery run.
Sunset Beach is west, across Tubbs Inlet. Holden Beach is east, across Shallotte Inlet. You drive back to the mainland for either one. The sand does not connect. The inlets have opinions.