Saratov Governorate (Russian: Саратовская губе́рния, romanized: Saratovskaya guberniya) was an administrative-territorial unit (guberniya) of the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR.

On December 25, 1769, the Saratov province was established as part of the Astrakhan Governorate.

On January 11, 1780, Empress Catherine the Great issued a decree of the establishment of the Saratov governorship of the northern districts of the Astrakhan Governorate to begin on November 7 of that year, followed by a decree on who will lead the new governorship.

For the grand opening of the Saratov governorship, on February 3, 1781, the Astrakhan governor, along with lieutenant-general Jacobi and Bishop Anthony arrived from Astrakhan.

On August 23, 1781 the Empress issued a decree approving the emblems of the city of Saratov and several Saratov governorship county-level cities (Atkarsk, Balashov, Kamyshin, Khvalynsk, Kuznetsk, Petrovsk, Serdobsk, Tsaritsyn, and Volsk).

In 1796, 41 of the governorships which were created by Catherine II had been abolished by her son Emperor Paul I of Russia including a decree on December 12, 1796 to abolish the Saratov governorship, and have its uyezds distributed between Penza and Astrakhan province. Because of the decree of March 5, 1797 Penza province was renamed Saratov province and Saratov was appointed a provincial city. On October 11, 1797 from the Saratov governorate the governorates of Tambov, Nizhny Novgorod and Simbirsk were established, from the rest of the Saratov province decree dated September 9, 1801 the Penza Governorate was established.

In 1802 Novokhopyorsky Uyezd was ceded to the Voronezh Governorate, and Chernoyarsky Uyezd was ceded to the Astrakhan governorate.

In 1835 three new uyezds were created - Nikolayevsk, Novouzensk and Tsarevsky. In 1851 Tsarevsky Uyezd was transferred to the Astrakhan governorate, and Nicholas and Novouzensk Uyezd - to the newly created Samara Governorate.