The women's eight competition at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia took place at Lake Lanier.

[1] The competition consisted of two main rounds (heats and finals) as well as a repechage.

The remaining 6 boats were placed in the repechage.

The repechage featured a single heat.

The top 4 boats in the repechage advanced to the "A" final, while the remaining 2 boats (5th and 6th placers in the repechage) were sent to the "B" final.