Freehold Borough is a Borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 10,976. It is the county seat of Monmouth County

What is now Freehold Borough was originally incorporated as a town by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 25, 1869, from portions within Freehold Township. The town became independent of the township in 1888. On April 15, 1919, Freehold was incorporated as a borough, including all of Freehold town and additional portions of Freehold Township, based on the results of a referendum held on July 8, 1919. Additional portions of the Freehold Township were annexed on September 7, 1926.

Freehold was originally named Monmouth County Courthouse. In 1714, John Reid, the first Surveyor General of East Jersey, wanted the county seat located in Freehold Township and thus sold the property to the Board of Chosen Freeholders at a bargain price, what may have been the deciding factor in Freehold's competition with Middletown and Shrewsbury for the site. In return for the heavily-discounted price, Reid placed a restrictive covenant in the deed that, should the property ever cease being used as a courthouse, ownership would revert back to the Reid family. Direct descendants of John Reid still reside in Freehold Township.

Freehold Borough also has a relatively unknown connection with the bicycle. Due to the large quantity of bicycles once produced in Freehold in the 1880s and 1890s, the town was known as the "Bicycle Capital of the World." The borough is home to the "Bicycle Museum" located on Main Street just across the street from Rita's Italian Ice and the fire department.

Noted current and former residents of Freehold include:

• Scott Conover (1968-), former Detroit Lions offensive tackle and author of the children's book Can I Play Too? was raised in Freehold.
• Danny Lewis (1936-), NFL running back from 1958-66, playing for the Detroit Lions, the Washington Redskins, and the New York Giants.
• Craig Mazin (1971-), screenwriter, producer and director.
• Tim Perry (1965-), former NBA player, most notably with the Phoenix Suns.
• Darrell Reid (1982-), defensive tackle for the Indianapolis Colts.
• J.R. Smith, professional basketball player currently playing for the Denver Nuggets, was born in Freehold.
• Bruce Springsteen (1949-), rock musician, was raised in Freehold Borough. The borough is the subject of his song "My Hometown", from the Born in the U.S.A. album, which described racial and economic tensions in the 1960s (the "textile mill being closed" was the A & M Karagheushian rug mill at Center and Jackson Streets). Springsteen has also performed the humorous song "In Freehold" about the town. The song can be found on some bootleg live recordings.