Academics

• John Young (professor of Greek) (1747–1820) was a Scottish professor of Greek at the University of Glasgow.
• John C. Young (pastor) (1803–1857) was an American educator, pastor, and president of Centre College.
• John Dragon Young (1949–1996) was a Chinese historian.
• John Lorenzo Young (1826–1881) was an English-Australian educationalist.
• John Richardson Young (1782–1804) was an American physiologist.

Arts and entertainment

• Harry Anthony (also known as John Young, 1870–1954), American singer
• John Young (actor) (1916–1996), Scottish actor
• John Young (jazz pianist) (1922–2008), American jazz pianist
• John Sacret Young (1946–2021), American author, producer, director, and screenwriter
• John Paul Young (born 1950), Australian singer
• John Bell Young (1953–2017), American concert pianist, music critic, and author
• John Young (British musician) (born 1956), British keyboardist and vocalist
• John Young (composer) (born 1962), New Zealand-born composer
• John Lloyd Young (born 1975), American actor and singer
• John G. Young (filmmaker) (active from the 1990s to the present), American director, producer, and writer

• John Young (engraver) (1755–1825), British mezzotint engraver and keeper of the British Institution
• John Henry Young (1880–1946), Australian art collector, art dealer, and art gallery director
• John Chin Young (1909–1997), Hawaiian-born American painter
• John Zerunge Young (born 1956), Hong Kong-born Australian artist

Business and industry

• John Young (agricultural reformer) (1773–1837), Scottish merchant in Nova Scotia
• John Young (architect) (1797–1877), English architect
• John Young (Scottish architect) (1826–1895)
• John Young (building contractor) (1827–1907), Australian building contractor
• John Orr Young (1886–1976), American advertiser
• John Young (brewer) (1921–2006), British chairman of Young's Brewery
• John A. Young (born 1932), American business manager
• John Young (businessman) (born around 1948), Australian entrepreneur
• John Hardin Young (also known as Jack Young, active from 1985 to the present), American attorney

Military

• John Young, a naval officer (c. 1740–1781), was an American sailor
• John Preston Young (1847–1934) was an American Confederate veteran, judge, and historian
• John Francis Young (1893–1929) was a Canadian soldier
• John Darling Young (1910–1988) was a British Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire
• Yang Kuo-chiang (also known as John K. Young, born 1950) was a Chinese military leader and Director of the National Security Bureau in the Republic of China
• John J. Young Jr. (born 1962) is an official in the U.S. Department of Defense

Politics and law

• John Young (Australian politician) (1842–1893), politician from New South Wales
• John Young (jurist) (1919–2008), Australian lawyer
• John Young (judge) (born 1952), Australian lawyer who worked in the Federal Court of Australia

• John Young (seigneur) (c. 1759–1819), Canadian land entrepreneur, lawyer, and politician born in Scotland
• John Young (Canadian politician) (1811–1878), member of the Canadian House of Commons
• John Young (Gloucester County, New Brunswick politician) (1841–1907), Canadian politician
• John Young (York County, New Brunswick politician) (1854–1934), Canadian politician
• John Allan Young (1895–1961), Canadian politician from Saskatchewan

• John Young (died 1589) (by 1519–1589), English politician and member of Parliament
• John Young (MP for Marlborough) (fl. 1559), English politician and member of Parliament for Marlborough
• John Young (MP for New Shoreham) (fl. 1586–1597), English politician and member of Parliament for New Shoreham, Sussex
• John Young (Scottish politician) (1930–2011), Scottish politician and member of the Scottish Parliament

• John Young (governor) (1802–1852), American politician and Governor of New York
• John Duncan Young (1823–1910), American congressman from Kentucky
• J. Smith Young (1834–1916), American politician
• John Russell Young (politician) (1882–1966), 18th president of the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia
• John Andrew Young (1916–2002), American politician from Texas
• John M. Young (1926–2010), American politician from Wisconsin
• John Young (Indiana politician), American politician from Indiana

• John Young (advisor) (c. 1742–1835), British-born government advisor in the Kingdom of Hawaii

Religion

• John Young (assistant bishop in London) (1463–1526), English Catholic clergy member and teacher
• John Young (university professor) (1514–1580), English Catholic clergy member and teacher
• John Young (bishop of Rochester) (1532–1605), English teacher and Anglican bishop of Rochester
• John Young (Dean of Winchester) (1585–1654), English Calvinist clergy member
• John Young (bishop of Argyll) (1624–1665), Scottish religious leader
• John G. Young (bishop) (1746–1813), Irish Catholic bishop
• John F. Young (1820–1885), American Episcopal bishop of Florida, translator of the hymn Silent Night
• John Willard Young (1844–1924), American Mormon apostle
• John Young (Dean of St George's Cathedral) (1914–1991), English Anglican clergy member

Science and medicine

• John Radford Young (1799–1885) was an English mathematician, professor, and author.
• John Young (1823–1900) was a Scottish geologist.
• John Young (1835–1902) was a Scottish naturalist and geologist who taught natural history at Glasgow University.
• John Stirling Young (1894–1971) was a Scottish physician who taught pathology at Aberdeen University.
• John Wesley Young (1879–1932) was an American mathematician.
• John Zachary Young (1907–1997) was an English zoologist.
• John Young (born around the 1960s) is an Australian naturalist.

Sports

• John Young (footballer, born in 1888) (1888–1915), Scottish football player
• John Young (footballer, born in 1889) (1889–19??), Scottish association football player
• John Young (footballer, born in 1891) (1891–1947), Scottish footballer
• John Young (footballer, born in 1951), Scottish association football player and manager
• John Young (footballer, born in 1957), Scottish association football player (Denver Avalanche)

• John Young (cricketer, born in 1863) (1863–1933), English cricketer
• John Young (cricketer, born in 1876) (1876–1913), English cricketer
• John Young (cricketer, born in 1884) (1884–1960), English cricketer

• John Young (pitcher) (active in the 1920s), American Negro league baseball player
• John Young (swimmer) (1917–2006), Bermudian swimmer
• John Young (field hockey) (born in 1934), Canadian Olympic field hockey player
• John Young (cyclist) (1936–2013), Australian cyclist
• John Young (rugby union) (1937–2020), English rugby union player
• John Young (first baseman) (1949–2016), American baseball player
• John Young (ice hockey) (born in 1969), American ice hockey and roller hockey player
• John Young (racing driver) (born in 1968), American racing driver

Others

• John Young (pioneer) (1764–1825), American surveyor
• John Young (abolitionist) (active in 1800s), American abolitionist and helper on the Underground Railroad
• John Russell Young (1840–1899), American writer, diplomat, and head of the Library of Congress
• John Preston Young (1847–1934), American soldier in the Confederate army, judge, and historian
• John P. Young (1849–1921), American writer and editor of the San Francisco Chronicle
• John Young (police officer) (1888–1952), New Zealand baker, policeman, labor union member, and police commissioner
• John C. Young (1912–1987), Chinese-American community leader and important figure in the development of Chinatown, San Francisco
• John Young (Cryptome) (1935–2025), American activist and architect

Other uses

• John Young Parkway, an American roadway in Florida, United States
• John W. Young Round Barn, an American historic building in Tama County, Iowa, United States
• USS John Young, an American warship in the United States Navy