Gore is a town, surrounding borough, and district in the Southland region of the South Island of New Zealand. The Gore District has a land area of 1,251.62 km² and a resident population of 12,200. The urban area estimated resident population is 9,710. Gore is a service town for the surrounding farm communities.

Before the arrival of Europeans the current site of Gore was a part of or near the routes used by Maori travellers. In 1836 southern Maori repelled a raid from the north, which provided sufficient security for Europeans to purchase land and settle in the area. By the mid-1850s large tracts nearby had been converted into sheep runs. In 1862 a few town sections were surveyed on the west bank of the river and Longford was named Gore as a compliment to Sir Thomas Gore Browne, an early Governor of New Zealand. In 1885 Gore was constituted a borough and in 1890 Gordon, by now commonly known as East Gore, amalgamated with Gore. It acquired a nickname of "Chicago of the South". The establishment of the Gore Electric Light & Power Syndicate led in 1894 to Gore becoming the third town in New Zealand to install a generator and provide a public electricity supply.

From the end of the Second World War until 1976 Gore enjoyed prosperity driven by record prices for agricultural produce. The farm sector went into decline after 1976 which led to a corresponding decline in the population. Since 2000 prosperity has returned as large numbers of farms in the surrounding area were converted to dairy farms to take advantage of high prices for dairy produce. This growth has led to low unemployment in the town.

Gore is well known for its connection with Country and Western music, with the annual New Zealand country music awards having been held in the town for 36 years. Recently Gore has also gained a reputation as a centre for the visual arts in the southern South Island.

The Flemings "Creamoata Mill" is an iconic local building, with Flemings "Creamoata" brand of porridge once considered the National Breakfast, and the mill itself considered one of the most modern cereal mills in the southern hemisphere. Production of all products was moved to Austrlia in 2001, and Creamoata was discontinued in 2008 after declining sales.

The former East Gore Presbyterian Church built in 1881 is one of the two remaining wooden Gothic churches designed by the eminent architect R.A. Lawson. Both of them are registered by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

Current Mayor of Gore District Council is Tracy Hicks.