Friston is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is 3 miles (5 km) southeast of Saxmundham, its post town, and 4 miles (6 km) northwest of Aldeburgh. The River Alde bounds the village on the south. The surrounding land is chiefly arable. The soil becomes partly marshy in the lower grounds. The village is noted for its early nineteenth century post mill. It is located next to the village of Knodishall. In 2011 the parish had a population of 344.

Its name is recorded in the Domesday Book as Frisetuna and seems to come from Anglo-Saxon Frīsa tūn = "the farmstead of the Frisians"; some of them may have come with the Angles and Saxons. An alternative name for the parish is Freston.

In 1887, John Bartholomew described Friston as:

Friston, par. and vil., E. Suffolk, 3 miles SE. of Saxmundham, 1846 ac., pop. 385; P.O.; in NW. vicinity of vil. is Friston Hall.

Thomas Bacon owned Friston Hall until he sold it in 1674.

On 1 April 1934 Hazlewood was abolished part of it became part of Friston.

From 1894 to 1934 it was in Plomesgate Rural District, from 1934 it was in Blyth Rural District, until 1974 it was in East Suffolk administrative county. From 1974 it was in Suffolk Coastal district, in 2019 it became part of East Suffolk district.

According to the census in 2011, the parishes male population was 164 and the female population was 180. The historical reports show that Friston's total population in 1841 was 455 with 210 people being under 20 and 245 people being 20 years and upwards indicating the parishes young population. The population graph from 1801 to 2011 shows an increase in population from 1801 to 1850 where it declined to just under 400 people. After this point the population of Friston fluctuated but continued increasing before the huge decline in the village's population around the 1970s which was common in most rural areas due to people migrating to metropolitan areas with higher accessibility for social and economic activities.