Bad Company were an English rock supergroup formed in London in 1973 by singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke (both ex-Free), guitarist Mick Ralphs (ex-Mott the Hoople) and bassist Boz Burrell (ex-King Crimson). Kirke was the only member to remain throughout the band's entire run, while he and Ralphs were the only members to appear on every studio album. Peter Grant, who managed the rock band Led Zeppelin, also managed Bad Company until 1982. Burrell died in 2006, followed by Ralphs in 2025, leaving Kirke and Rodgers as the only surviving members of the original line-up.

Bad Company enjoyed great success throughout the 1970s. Their first three albums, Bad Company (1974), Straight Shooter (1975) and Run with the Pack (1976), reached the top five in the album charts in both the UK and the US. Many of their singles and songs, such as "Bad Company", "Can't Get Enough" (1974), "Feel Like Makin' Love" (1975), "Shooting Star" (1975), "Burnin' Sky" (1977) and "Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy" (1979), remain staples of classic rock radio. They have sold 20 million RIAA-certified albums in the US and 40 million worldwide. Though they initially disbanded in 1982, Bad Company reunited on many occasions to record and tour until 2019. In 2023, Kirke revealed that they would not continue as a band following the development of Rodgers' recent health issues.

Bad Company were selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2025.

Bad Company was formed in Westminster, London. It consisted of four seasoned musicians: two former members of Free, singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke; former Mott the Hoople guitarist Mick Ralphs; and ex-King Crimson bassist Boz Burrell. The band signed to Swan Song Records/Atlantic Records in North America, and with Island Records in other countries. (Island Records had until that time been the UK home to both Free and King Crimson, as well as to Mott the Hoople for their first four albums; Atlantic, in turn, released King Crimson's and Mott's early albums in the US through a licensing agreement with Island.) Atlantic/Warner Music would later acquire the non-North American rights to the band's catalogue.

Contrary to speculation that singer Paul Rodgers named the band after the Jeff Bridges film Bad Company, Rodgers stated in an interview with Spinner.com that the idea came from a book of Victorian morals that showed a picture of an innocent child looking up at an unsavoury character leaning against a lamp post. The caption read "beware of bad company".

The band's 1974 debut album, Bad Company, was recorded at Headley Grange, Hampshire, in Ronnie Lane's Mobile Studio. The album reached number one on the Billboard 200 in the US, and number 3 in the UK Albums Chart, spending 25 weeks in the UK charts. The album has been certified five times platinum in the US, and became the 46th–best-selling album of the 1970s. The singles "Can't Get Enough" and "Movin' On" reached No. 5 and No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1975, their second album, Straight Shooter, reached No. 3 in both the UK and the US and also went platinum in the US. The album also spawned two hit singles, "Good Lovin' Gone Bad" at No. 36 and the slower "Feel Like Makin' Love" at No. 10.

Their third album, Run with the Pack, was released in 1976 and reached No. 4 in the UK and No. 5 in the US. Bad Company scheduled a British tour with the band of former Free member Paul Kossoff, Back Street Crawler, to support the album, as well as a new album by Back Street Crawler. This double headline tour was scheduled to commence on 25 April 1976 but was halted due to Kossoff's death on 19 March 1976. Released in 1977, Burnin' Sky fared the poorest of their first four records, reaching No. 15 in the US and No. 17 in the UK. Desolation Angels, released in 1979, did better than its predecessor, peaking at No. 3 in the US and No. 10 in the UK. Desolation Angels also embellished the group's sound with synthesisers and strings. It had two charting singles: "Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy" at No. 13 and "Gone Gone Gone" at No. 56. By the end of the 1970s, however, the band grew increasingly disenchanted with playing large stadiums. In addition, Peter Grant lost interest in the group and management in general after Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham died on 25 September 1980. In the words of Simon Kirke, "Peter was definitely the glue which held us all together and in his absence we came apart".

A three-year hiatus from the studio ended with the release of Rough Diamonds in August 1982. This would be the sixth and final LP in the group's original incarnation until four new songs were recorded in 1998. The album was the worst-selling Bad Company album of those featuring Paul Rodgers as the front man. The album peaked at No. 15 in the UK and No. 26 in the US. After the release of Rough Diamonds, Bad Company disbanded. Mick Ralphs said, "Paul wanted a break and truthfully we all needed to stop. Bad Company had become bigger than us all and to continue would have destroyed someone or something. From a business standpoint, it was the wrong thing to do, but Paul's instinct was absolutely right". Despite being famous for their live shows packing the largest stadiums for almost a decade, Bad Company did not release an official live album of performances from this period until they recorded What You Hear Is What You Get: The Best of Bad Company on the Here Comes Trouble tour during the Brian Howe era. The album was released in November 1993 and featured live versions of hits from both the Paul Rodgers era and the Brian Howe era. In 2006, the album Live in Albuquerque 1976 was released, compiled from recordings made by Mick Ralphs, who regularly taped the group's shows during the Rodgers era and used the tapes to critique the band's performances. Bootlegs of Bad Company's live performances from this period were also available, including "Boblingen Live" (1974), "Live in Japan" (1975) and "Shooting Star Live at the L.A. Forum" (1975).