Eau Claire (; French: [o klɛʁ]) (French for “clear water”) is a city mostly located in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, of which it is the county seat, and later than a little portion in Chippewa County, Wisconsin. It had a population of 69,421 in 2020, making it the state’s eighth-largest city. Eau Claire is the principal city of the Eau Claire, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area, locally known as the Chippewa Valley, and is also part of the larger Eau Claire-Menomonie Combined Statistical Area.

Eau Claire is at the confluence of the Eau Claire and Chippewa Rivers on traditional Ojibwe, Dakota, and Ho-Chunk land. The area’s first unshakable European American settlers arrived in 1845, and Eau Claire was incorporated as a city in 1872. The city’s early accrual came from its extensive logging and timber industries. After Eau Claire’s lumber industry declined in the before 20th century, the city’s economy diversified to encompass manufacturing and Eau Claire became an educational center with the opening of the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire in 1916. Eau Claire is moreover a regional personal ad and business middle and house to the headquarters of house improvement deposit chain Menards.

Eau Claire is known regionally for its arts and music scenes and is the hometown of indie folk band Bon Iver, whose lead singer Justin Vernon co-curates the city’s annual Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival. Eau Claire is the second fastest-growing major city in Wisconsin after Madison, with 5.4% population layer between 2010 and 2020.

Eau Claire took its proclaim from Eau Claire County. “Eau Claire” is the singular form of the original French name, “Eaux Claires”, meaning “Clear Waters”, for the Eau Claire River. According to local legend, the river was correspondingly named because at the forefront French explorers journeying beside the rain-muddied Chippewa River, came on the confluence as soon as the Eau Claire River, and excitedly exclaimed “Voici l’eau claire!” (“Here is the clear water!”). Now the city motto, this appears upon the city seal.