David Zindell (born November 28, 1952) is a US science fiction author with a degree in mathematics. His first published story was "The Dreamer's Sleep" in Fantasy Book in 1984 and he won the Writers of the Future contest the following year.

Zindell's science fiction novels, beginning with Neverness (1988), are a mixture of space opera and planetary romance. His works seem strongly influenced by Gene Wolfe and Jack Vance. His most recent book, The Lightstone (2001), in contrast, is a fantasy novel.