Clifton is an inner suburb of Bristol, England, and the name of one of the city's thirty-five electoral wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells. The eastern part of the suburb lies within the ward of Clifton Down.

Clifton is home to Isambard Kingdom Brunel's Clifton Suspension Bridge; many buildings of the University of Bristol, including Goldney Hall; the Roman Catholic Clifton Cathedral; Christ Church, Clifton Down; Clifton College; Clifton High School; the former Amberley House preparatory school; Queen Elizabeth's Hospital School and The Clifton Club. It is also noted for the Downs, a large, open park.

Although the suburb has no formal boundaries, the name Clifton is generally applied to the high ground stretching from Whiteladies Road in the east to the rim of the Avon Gorge in the west, and from Clifton Down and Durdham Down in the north to Cornwallis Crescent in the south. This area corresponds roughly with the Bristol City Council electoral wards of Clifton and Clifton Down, albeit with some discrepancies. The southern boundary of Clifton ward is Hotwells Road, encompassing the hillside areas that might typically be considered to be the Cliftonwood and Hotwells neighbourhoods rather than Clifton. The eastern boundary of Clifton Down ward encompasses Redland Park and Cotham Hill, which might typically be considered to be in the Redland and Cotham neighbourhoods.

Clifton has several neighbourhood focal points, including Whiteladies Road, an important shopping district to the east, and Clifton Village, a smaller shopping area near the Avon Gorge to the west.

Clifton was recorded in the Domesday Book as Clistone, the name of the village denoting a 'hillside settlement' and referring to its position on a steep hill. Situated to the west of Bristol city centre, it was at one time a separate settlement. The earliest depiction of the village is as a detail in James Millerd's 1673 prospect of Bristol.

The village became attached to Bristol by continuous development during the Georgian era and was formally incorporated into the city in the 1830s. Until 1898, Clifton St Andrew was a separate civil parish within the Municipal Borough of Bristol. In 1891 the parish had a population of 29,345. On 30 September 1896, the parish was abolished to form North Bristol.

Clifton is one of the oldest and most affluent areas of the city, much of it having been built with profits from tobacco and the slave trade. Grand houses that required many servants were built in the area. Although some were detached or semi-detached properties, the bulk were built as terraces, many with three or more floors. One famous terrace is the majestic Royal York Crescent, visible from the Avon Gorge below and looking across the Bristol docks. Berkeley Square and Berkeley Crescent, which were built around 1790, are examples of Georgian architecture. Secluded squares include the triangular Canynge Square. The Whiteladies Picture House on Whiteladies Road was converted into offices and a gymnasium in 2001 but it was re-opened as a cinema by Everyman Cinemas in 2016. Clifton Lido was built in 1850 but closed to the public in 1990, it was redeveloped and opened again to the public in November 2008.

On 17 December 1978 a bomb on Queen's Road in Clifton detonated, injuring at least seven people. The Provisional IRA was responsible.