Austin is a city in Mower County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 23,314 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Mower County⁶. The southern part of the city is in Austin Township while the northern part is in Lansing Township and it is politically independent of both. It is located at the intersection of Interstate 90 and U.S. 218 in the southeastern part of the state. The town was originally settled along the Cedar River and it has two man-made lakes called East Side Lake and Mill pond.

The Hormel Foods Corporation is the largest employer in Austin and it holds a yearly SPAM Jam in Austin. "SPAM Town USA", as Austin is sometimes called, is home to the SPAM Museum.

From August of 1984 until June of 1985, there was a major strike at Hormel which resulted in then-Governor Rudy Perpich requesting National Guard intervention allowing replacement workers to enter the plant. This strike was documented in the Academy Award-winning Barbara Koppel film, "American Dream." The town still remains divided over the issue of labor unions at the plant.