Kirsten Vangsness (born July 7, 1972) is an American actress. She graduated from Cerritos High School in Cerritos, California in June 1990. She is currently appearing on the CBS drama series Criminal Minds as Audio/Visual Tech Penelope Garcia.

Vangsness' theater work has won her several awards, including the 15 Minutes of Fem Best Actress Award, the Los Angeles Drama Critics Award for Best Emerging Comic Actress and the Golden Betty Award. She is also an acclaimed writer, and her work has been published in the Los Angeles Times Magazine.