Ballard Down is an area of chalk downland on the Purbeck Hills in the English county of Dorset.

Old Harry Rocks, just offshore from the dip slope of the down, and The Needles on the westernmost tip of the Isle of Wight, are remnants of this ridge.

The scarp slope of the down faces south, over Swanage, meeting the sea as Ballard Cliff.

The down was an area of calcareous grassland for up to 1000 years until World War II, when there was a sudden rise in the need for arable agricultural land.

Erected in 1892 by George Burt, it was taken down in 1941 as it was a landmark that might have aided enemy aircraft during World War II, but was re-erected in 1952.