Erethistes is a genus of South Asian river catfishes.

There are currently two recognized species in this genus:[1] This genus is distributed in the Ganges and Brahmaputra drainages in northern India and Nepal, and east and south to the Salween drainage on the border of Myanmar and Thailand.

[2] Erethistes species lack a thoracic adhesive apparatus, a smooth to granulate anterior margin on a strong dorsal fin spine, a papillate upper lip, and 8–12 anal fin rays.

The anterior margin of the pectoral fin spine either has serrations all pointing toward tip of spine; arranged in divergent pairs; or outwardly directed and not divergent.

The body is robust rather than slender as in some other erethistid genera, and is moderately short and flattened.