Descartes (French pronunciation: [dekaʁt] ⓘ) is a large village and commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France.

It is famous for the birthplace of the French mathematician and philosopher who invented the Cartesian coordinate system, René Descartes.

Initially called La Haye-en-Touraine, the town was the birthplace of the philosopher René Descartes (1596–1650), who invented the Cartesian coordinate system, although his family home was in nearby Châtellerault.

The river Creuse forms a border between the department of Vienne, as well the region of Centre-Val de Loire and Nouvelle-Aquitaine.

The town is notable in Acadian genealogy as the birthplace of the Heberts and the famous mathematician René Descartes, who invented the Cartesian coordinate system.