Ocean Ridge is a small incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, occupying a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway. It sits along State Road A1A, about 1.3 miles east of Boynton Beach, 1.6 miles north of the small town of Briny Breezes, and 4.3 miles south of South Palm Beach. With a 2020 population of 1,830 across roughly two square miles—about half of it water—Ocean Ridge is one of the county's smallest and least densely developed municipalities. The barrier island has a long human history. Before European settlement, the area was inhabited by the Jaega people, and archaeological evidence near the present-day Boynton Inlet shows substantial shell mounds and middens left by indigenous inhabitants. The inlet itself, formally the South Lake Worth Inlet, remains a defining landmark, connecting the Intracoastal Waterway to the ocean at the town's southern end and serving as a focus for fishing and boating. Today Ocean Ridge is an almost entirely residential community of waterfront estates and townhouses, with no high-rise corridor and no commercial center of its own. Its character is defined by low density, mature vegetation, and a calm, private atmosphere that contrasts with the busier coastal cities to its north and south. Residents rely on nearby Boynton Beach and Delray Beach for shopping, dining, and services. The town is served by the School District of Palm Beach County, with public school assignments generally located in the surrounding mainland communities. For those seeking a quiet, water-oriented coastal setting with direct ocean and Intracoastal access, while remaining minutes from Delray Beach, Palm Beach, and the region's airports and amenities, Ocean Ridge offers a distinctive, low-key alternative to South Florida's more heavily developed shorefronts.