"When Love Breaks Down" is a single by English pop band Prefab Sprout, first released by Kitchenware Records in October 1984.

[3] The song was also the group's first chart appearance in the United States, peaking at No.

[4] "When Love Breaks Down" was recorded and mixed at RAK Studios, London.

The song was re-released in March 2007, this time with an entirely new acoustic arrangement, recorded in 2006 by frontman Paddy McAloon to coincide with the two-disc Legacy Edition of Steve McQueen.

The song has been covered by many artists including the Zombies, E'voke, Kate Walsh, Lisa Stansfield, Portastatic, Snow Patrol and Nerina Pallot.