Swimming at the 2009 World Aquatics Championships – Women's 200 metre backstroke

The heats for the women's 200 m backstroke race at the 2009 World Championships took place in the morning and evening of 31 July, with the final in the evening session of 1 August at the Foro Italico in Rome, Italy.

Records
Prior to this competition, the existing world and competition records were as follows:

The following records were established during the competition: