William Cotton
William Cotton is the name of the following people:
- William Cotton (Bishop) († 1621), English clergyman, Bishop of Exeter
- William Cotton (banker) (1786–1866), English inventor, banker and philanthropist
- William Cotton (inventor) (1817-1887), British inventor of the cotton machine
- William Charles Cotton (1813–1879), Anglican priest, missionary and beekeeper
- William R. Cotton (* 1940), American meteorologist