Cougar is an unincorporated community and former town in Cowlitz County, Washington. Cougar is located around 50 miles (80 km) northeast of Vancouver on Washington State Route 503 and along the northwest bank of Yale Lake, a reservoir on the Lewis River.

The population of Cougar was 122 at the 1990 Census, when it was still incorporated as a town, but disincorporated before the 2000 Census. As of the 2020 census, the population is 118.

The Cougar community is part of the Woodland School District, a K-12 school district of about 2,200 students.

Cougar is the nearest community to Mount St. Helens, which lies 13 miles (20.9215 km) to its northeast. The eruption of Mount St. Helens on May 18, 1980, was the deadliest and most economically destructive volcanic event in the history of the United States.

A post office called Cougar was established in 1902. The community was named after the cougar which were abundant in the area at that time.

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Cougar has a warm-summer mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Cougar was 112 °F (44.4 °C) on June 29, 2021, while the coldest temperature recorded was 4 °F (−15.6 °C) on December 30, 1968.

Cougar is in the territory of Woodland Public Schools, which operates Woodland High School.

Cougar first appeared as a census designated place in the 2020 U.S. census.