The Hawthornden Prize is a British literary award given each year to a British, Irish, or British-based author for a work of "imaginative literature," such as poetry, novels, history, biography, or creative non-fiction, published in the previous year.

The prize is for books written in English, not for translated works. Authors who have previously won the prize cannot be considered for the shortlist. Unlike other major literary awards, the Hawthornden Prize does not ask for entries. There have been several years without a winner, including 1945–57, 1959, 1966, 1971–73, and 1984–87.

The prize was created in 1919 by Alice Warrender. It, along with the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes, is one of the oldest literary awards in Britain.

The prize was worth £100 in 1936. By 1995, it had increased to £2,000, and by 2017, it was worth £15,000. It was once managed by the Hawthornden Trust, which Warrender established, and supported by the private trust of Drue Heinz. Today, it is managed by the Hawthornden Foundation, which Drue Heinz created.