Most of Tyresö Municipality lies within the Stockholm urban area.
The first humans arrived in what today is Tyresö Municipality somewhere around the 30th century BC. It would not be until about the 7th century that permanent settlements would start appearing though. There are some graves and other remnants left from this prehistoric time.
The Tyresö estate has its origins in the 14th century. During the 17th century the estate was at its largest, covering nearly the entire current area of the municipality. The Tyresö Palace and Tyresö Church were built during this century.
Tyresö was an important industrial centre in the Stockholm region between the 16th and 19th centuries, thanks to the watermills that could be built on the streams between the lakes. The waterwheels in the municipal arms represent the three hydropower facilities at Nyfors, Uddby and Follbrinksströmmen. The industries included rolling mills, gristmills, forges, paper mills, sawmills, and a brickworks. None of the watermills are left today. The Uddby mill burned down in 1895, and a hydroelectric power plant was built in its place, which still stands today and is the only such plant in the Stockholm area.
During the early 20th century, the large land area of the Tyresö estate began to be divided into lots, and summer cottages began to be built. Some quite luxurious ones were built in the Brevik area. The rate of construction increased rapidly in the early decades of the century. From the 1950s onwards, the summer cottages began to be converted into around the year dwellings at a rapid pace.
From the 1950s onwards, Bollmora experienced a huge expansion rate, especially after the legislation Lex Bollmora in 1959 which allowed municipal real estate companies to operate in other municipalities than their own. A municipal centre formed in Bollmora, Bollmora Centrum, which was inaugurated in 1965. The Million Programme put its distinctive print on Tyresö as well — especially Bollmora, many of the apartment building areas come from that programme.
During the expansive phase from the 1950s onwards, the population of Tyresö has grown from about 5,000 to just over 44,000 at present.