El Escorial is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Madrid, located 45 km (28 mi) northwest of the Spanish capital Madrid.

On the outskirts of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is the national memorial Valle de los Caídos (Valley of the Fallen).

The name of the town derives from slag (escoria) deposits from an old local foundry.

The municipality of El Escorial contains a Renfe commuter train station connecting the area to Madrid.

L. Brent Bozell, Jr., the American conservative Catholic writer, moved his large family to the town in the mid-1960s as he became disillusioned with American politics and came to idealize Francoist Spain.