Snake Pass is a hill pass in the Derbyshire section of the Peak District, crossing the Pennines between Glossop and the Ladybower Reservoir at Ashopton. The pass carries the A57 road between Manchester and Sheffield, but it is no longer the main signposted route between those two cities, with traffic instead directed through the Woodhead Pass to the north.

Like several other roads that cross the Pennines, Snake Pass has a poor accident record compared with roads in the UK generally, although more favourable compared with other roads in the area. It is often closed in winter because of snow, and has seen several longer-term closures owing to subsidence following heavy rain. The road remains a popular route for tourists and motorcycles, however, and sections have been used for semi-professional cycling races such as the Tour of Britain.

Snake Pass runs through the National Trust's High Peak Estate, and lies within the High Peak borough of Derbyshire; much of it falls within the Hope Woodlands parish, the remainder being within the Charlesworth parish. It is part of the shortest route by road from Manchester to Sheffield.

The pass starts east of Glossop and climbs to the Pennines watershed between the moorland plateaux of Kinder Scout and Bleaklow to a high point of 1,680 feet (510 m) above sea level, where it crosses the Pennine Way. After this, it passes a public house that used to be known as the Snake Inn, and descends through forest to the Ladybower Reservoir at Ashopton.

The name of the road matches its winding route, but actually derives from the emblem of the Snake Inn, one of the few buildings on the high stretch of road. In turn, the pub's name and sign were derived from the serpent on the Cavendish arms of William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire. In the early 21st century, the inn was renamed the Snake Pass Inn, such that the inn now refers to the road that referred to itself.

An ancient road between Glossop and Ashopton was the Doctor's Gate, which follows the Shelf Brook between Shelf Moor and Coldharbour Moor. It is marked on some maps as a Roman road, though this is disputed. The route is now popular with walkers and mountain bikers. In 1932, an Iron Age axe thought to be more than 2,000 years old was found near the site of this road.

The current road further south was designed as a toll road to improve communications east of Glossop, which was expanding as an industrial town. It was originally called the Sheffield to Glossop Turnpike and run by a turnpike trust, the Sheffield and Glossop Turnpike Trust, and it shortened the route by 15 miles. An act of Parliament to build the road, the Sheffield and Glossop Road Act 1818 (58 Geo. 3. c. xxxv) was passed, and construction was financed by the Duke of Norfolk (Lord of the Manor of Sheffield and Glossop) and the Duke of Devonshire (owner of the Ashop Valley).

William Fairbank, a surveyor from Sheffield, designed the road, with construction being undertaken by John Macadam. The road opened on 23 August 1821, having cost £18,625 to build (equivalent to £2 million in 2023). Upon opening, it was the highest turnpike road in England. The road was immediately popular and increased toll collections of traffic heading to Glossop. However, improvements in the rival Sheffield and Chapel-en-le-Frith Turnpike, with Winnats Pass being bypassed in 1819 by a new route via Mam Tor, removed much of the advantage of the Snake Pass route, which also suffered from a greater susceptibility to snow, leading to less than anticipated income. Subsequent acts of Parliament extended the turnpike trust; the Sheffield and Glossop Road Act 1825 (6 Geo. 4. c. xcviii) and the Sheffield and Glossop Turnpike Road Act 1851 (14 & 15 Vict. c. cxxxiii). Tolls were abolished on the road in June 1870, in return for the local highway boards taking over maintenance responsibilities. The Local Government Act 1888 transferred responsibility for maintenance to the new county councils: in the case of the Snake Pass section of the turnpike road, this was Derbyshire County Council.