"Let's Wait Awhile" is a song by American singer Janet Jackson, released as the fifth single from her third studio album Control (1986). It was written and produced by Jackson and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, with Melanie Andrews also serving as the co-writer of the song. It is also the first song Jackson co-produced. Inspired by a conversation the singer had with a friend, the song speaks of sexual abstinence and postponing intimacy within a relationship.

The song received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the track's sweetness and Jackson's tender delivery. It was also praised for its meaningful message, considered to be a teaching tool to encourage sexual abstinence. In the United States, it peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary singles charts and became a number one hit on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Outside the US, it reached number three in the United Kingdom, where she made her debut on the BBC's Top of the Pops on March 26, 1987, and number four in Ireland, in addition to charting with the top 40 in several other countries. It has been included in two of Jackson's greatest hits albums, Design of a Decade: 1986–1996 (1995) and Number Ones (2009).

A music video for the song was directed by Dominic Sena and tells a lighthearted, accompanying story of a couple in love. Jackson has performed the song live in all of her tours, beginning with the Rhythm Nation World Tour 1990 through the Unbreakable World Tour (2015-16), receiving praise for her vocal performance. The single has been covered and sampled in numerous songs throughout the years, while also being featured on the soundtrack of a telenovela in Brazil. In 2004, Serbian singer LoOney and Lud samples "Let's Wait Awhile" in Geto Riba, from the 2006 album, U Ime Igre by Lud in 2006.

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