| Country: | French Third Republic |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Previous Election: | 1877 French legislative election |
| Previous Year: | 1877 |
| Next Election: | 1885 French legislative election |
| Next Year: | 1885 |
| Seats For Election: | All 545 seats in the Chamber of Deputies |
| Majority Seats: | 273 |
| Image1: | Léon Gambetta Carjat 2 (cropped).jpg |
| Leader1: | Léon Gambetta |
| Party1: | Republican Union |
| Seats1: | 204 |
| Leader2: | Jules Ferry |
| Party2: | Republican Left |
| Seats2: | 168 |
| Image4: | Georges-Eugène Haussmann - BNF Gallica.jpg |
| Leader4: | Georges-Eugène Haussmann |
| Party4: | Bonapartists (political party) |
| Seats4: | 46 |
| Image5: | Louis Blanc mid career.jpg |
| Leader5: | Louis Blanc |
| Party5: | Far-left |
| Seats5: | 46 |
| Prime Minister | |
| Before Election: | Jules Ferry |
| Before Party: | Republican Left |
| After Election: | Léon Gambetta |
| After Party: | Republican Union |
Legislative elections were held in France on 21 August and 4 September 1881. The elections marked the collapse of the right compared to the 1877 elections.
It was a great success for the followers of Léon Gambetta, whom President Jules Grévy appointed premier two months after the election. His government only lasted 73 days, however, before falling over the issue of electoral reform.[1] This led to three short-lived minority governments, until Jules Ferry was able to form a second government in February 1883 with the support of Gambetta's Republican Union.