Jōetsu (上越市, Jōetsu-shi^?) is a city located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

As of June 1, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 205,521, with 72,982 households and a population density of 211.15 persons per km². The total area is 973.32 km².

The city was founded on April 29, 1971, when the cities of Takada and Naoetsu were consolidated. The city was part of the now-defunct Nakakubiki District until 31 December 2004.

On January 1, 2005, Jōetsu absorbed the town of Yasuzuka, the villages of Maki, Ōshima and Uragawara (all from Higashikubiki District); the towns of Itakura, Kakizaki, Ōgata and Yoshikawa, the villages of Kiyosato, Kubiki, Nakagou and Sanwa (all from Nakakubiki District); and the town of Nadachi (from Nishikubiki District). Now Jōetsu extended into the now-defunct Higashikubiki and Nishikubiki Districts.

Owing to its location at the foot of Mount Hotaka facing onshore winds from the Sea of Japan, Jōetsu is apart from the Owase region of the Kii Peninsula the wettest low-lying part of the northern hemisphere temperate zone, receiving an average of around 2.8 metres (110.2 in) of precipitation per year. As a comparison, Forks on the windward side of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula receives 110 inches (2.79 m) and Rize on the Black Sea coast of Turkey 2,530 millimetres (100 in). The cold winds from the combined power of the Siberian High and Aleutian Low give Jōetsu an average of 6.3 metres (250 in) of snowfall that however tends to melt significantly even during the winter, leaving a cover of 0.47 metres (18.5 in) at its peak in January. On the 26th of February 1945, Jōetsu received as much as 3.77 metres (148 in) of snow in one day. The heaviest annual snowfall was 14.94 metres (590 in) in 1985/1986 and the heaviest monthly total precipitation 942 millimetres (37 in) in January 1945, whilst the driest month was August 1985 with 16 millimetres (0.63 in).