Coordinates: 53°47′49″N 2°18′40″W / 53.797°N 2.311°W / 53.797; -2.311

Padiham ( /ˈpædiəm/) is a small town and civil parish on the River Calder, about 3 miles (5 km) west of Burnley and south of Pendle Hill, in Lancashire, England. It is part of the Borough of Burnley but also has its own town council with varied powers.

No prehistoric or Roman sites have been found in the urban area and Padiham, a name with Anglo-Saxon origin is not recorded in the Domesday Book. The first recorded mention of the town, as 'Padyngham', dates from 1294. For hundreds of years it was a market town where produce from Pendleside was bought and sold. Padiham market is still held every Wednesday and Friday. The town expanded and was substantially redeveloped during the Industrial Revolution and the central area is now a conservation area.

Padiham's population peaked around 1921 at about 14,000 declining to 10,000 in the early 1960s and 8,998 at the time of the 2001 census. This follows the decline of the traditional cotton, coal and engineering manufacturing base during that period.