Topsail Island has three principal communities, Surf City, Topsail Beach, North Topsail Beach.
Surf City, the largest of the island towns, is located in the center of Topsail Island. It serves as the commercial hub, offering numerous retail stores, restaurants, and a supermarket. The ocean fishing pier offers anglers a prime fishing location with an on site tackle shop. The town has the only traffic light on the island. Just south of the light, there's a community park with basketball courts, slides, swings and a picnic area.