The Hortenkopf is a hill, 606 metres above sea level (NN), in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, which lies in the middle of the Palatine Forest between Hofstätten and Leimen.

The hill is part of the Frankenweide, a centrally-located massif within this range of low mountains.

From the Hortenkopf it is possible to walk to Leimen, Kaiserslautern-Mölschbach, Elmstein and via the forest lodges of Taubensuhl and Heldenstein almost as far as Neustadt on continuous hill ridges without dropping below the 450 metre contour line.

On the southwestern flank of the Hortenkopf rises the northern headstream of the Wieslauter, which - subsequently as the Lauter – flows directly into the River Rhine.

Further northwest rises a tributary of the Merzalbe, whose waters flow via the Rodalb, Schwarzbach, Blies, Saar and Moselle into the Rhine.