Capstan may refer to:

• Capstan (band), an American post-hardcore band
• Capstan (cigarette), a brand of British cigarette
• Capstan (nautical), a rotating machine used to control or apply force to another element
• Capstan, rotating spindles used to move recording tape through the mechanism of a tape recorder
• Capstan equation, formula to describe hold-force in relation to load-force for flexible lines around a cylinder
• Horse capstan, a device similar to a windlass used in mining; also called a whim
• Slingsby Capstan, a British two-seat glider of the 1960s
• Capstan (software), audio restoration program by Celemony which eliminates wow and flutter
• Capstan Station, a station on the Canada Line of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system.