The women's 100 metre backstroke event at the 1956 Olympic Games took place on 5 December. This swimming event used backstroke. Twenty-three swimmers from 14 countries competed in this swimming event. Because an Olympic-size swimming pool is 50 metres long, this race consisted of two lengths of the pool. This was the seventh time that there had been the women's 100-metre backstroke after its debut in the 1924 Paris Olympics.
Eight fastest swimmers advanced to the finals.
Heat 1
Heat 2
Heat 3
Key: WR = World record