Charles Elkin Mathews (1851 – 10 November 1921) was a British publisher and bookseller who played an important role in the literary life of late 19th and early 20th century London.
Mathews' was born in Gravesend and learned his trade in London and Bath, before in 1884 opening his own shop in Exeter where he published his first books, in collaboration with other local booksellers. In 1887 he returned to London and from 1892 to 1894 he worked in partnership with John Lane, culminating in the publication of The Yellow Book in 1894.
Lane went on to form The Bodley Head and Mathews set up on his own, publishing works by his neighbour W. B. Yeats, Lionel Johnson, James Joyce, Ezra Pound and Robert Bridges, amongst others.