Brainerd is a surname. Notable people with the name include:
David Brainerd (1718–1747), Christian missionary to Native Americans, brother of John Eleanor Hoyt Brainerd (1868–1942), U.S. novelist of the early 20th century Elizabeth L. Brainerd (born 1963), American biologist Ezra Brainerd (1844–1924), president of Middlebury College in Vermont John Brainerd (1720–1781), Presbyterian minister and missionary, brother of David John Grist Brainerd (1904–1988), American computer pioneer Lawrence Brainerd (1794–1870), U.S. Senator from Vermont Paul Brainerd (born 1947), American businessman, computer programmer and philanthropist Samuel Myron Brainerd (1842–1898), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania Sibyl Brainerd (1896–1997), another name for Sibyl Anikeef, American photographer Tereasa Brainerd, astronomer