The Rough Guide to World Music is a world music compilation album originally released in the United Kingdom in 1994.

The first of the World Music Network Rough Guides World Music series, it was co-released with an eponymous reference book.

[1] The album features artists hailing from Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe.

Artwork was designed by Impetus, and the compilation was produced by Phil Stanton, co-founder of the World Music Network.

[1][2] Raymond McKinney of AllMusic called the album an "ideal way to taste-test the endless flavors the genre has to offer.