Longport was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 7, 1898, from portions of Egg Harbor Township.
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,054 people, 544 households, and 317 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,765.2 people per square mile (1,070.9/km). There were 1,574 housing units at an average density of 4,129.5/sq mi (1,599.3/km). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.58% White, 0.09% African American, 1.14% Asian, and 0.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.47% of the population.
There were 544 households out of which 10.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were married couples living together, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 37.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.94 and the average family size was 2.53.
In the borough the population was spread out with 11.4% under the age of 18, 2.6% from 18 to 24, 18.9% from 25 to 44, 32.6% from 45 to 64, and 34.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 57 years. For every 100 females there were 86.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $51,324, and the median income for a family was $68,194. Males had a median income of $53,250 versus $36,146 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $50,884. About 2.9% of families and 3.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.5% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.