Timberlake was released from custody later on Tuesday morning (Wednesday AEST) after being formally charged in Sag Harbor, on the eastern end of Long Island.
He was charged with one DWI count, with his next court date scheduled for July 26, the Suffolk County district attorney’s office said.
Police said he ran a stop sign and veered out of his lane in the posh seaside summer retreat.
The boy band singer-turned-solo star and actor was driving a BMW in Sag Harbor around 12.30am when an officer stopped him and determined he was intoxicated, according to a court document.
“His eyes were bloodshot and glassy, a strong odour of an alcoholic beverage was emanating from his breath, he was unable to divide attention, he had slowed speech, he was unsteady afoot and he performed poorly on all standardised field sobriety tests,” the court papers said.
Timberlake, 43, told the officer he had one martini and was following some friends home, according to the documents. After being arrested and taken to a police station in nearby East Hampton, he refused a breath test, said the court papers, which listed his occupation as “professional” and said he’s “self-employed”.
Timberlake’s lawyer and representatives did not immediately return requests for comment from The Associated Press.
Sag Harbor is a coastal village in the Hamptons, about 160 kilometres from New York City. In the summer, it is a hot spot for wealthy visitors.
A young Timberlake was a Disney Mouseketeer, where his castmates included future girlfriend Britney Spears.
He rose to fame in the popular boy band NSYNC and embarked on a solo recording career in 2002.
As an actor, Timberlake has won acclaim in movies including The Social Network and Friends With Benefits.
He has won 10 Grammy awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards.
Last year, Timberlake was in the headlines when Spears released her memoir, The Woman in Me.
In March, he released his first new album in six years, the nostalgic Everything I Thought It Was, a return to his familiar future funk sound.
Timberlake has two upcoming shows in Chicago on Friday and Saturday, then is scheduled for New York’s Madison Square Garden next week on Tuesday and Wednesday.