Pennsylvania Route 981 is a state highway which runs 50.4 miles (81.1 km) across Westmoreland County, in southwestern Pennsylvania. The highway begins at Pennsylvania Route 51 in Rostraver Township, Pennsylvania, and runs northward across Westmoreland County, passing through the towns of Mount Pleasant, Latrobe, and New Alexandria before ending at Pennsylvania Route 819 in Salina.

Pennsylvania Route 981 begins at Pennsylvania Route 51 in Rostraver Township. From Rostraver, the route runs eastward to Mount Pleasant, where it meets Pennsylvania Route 31. Route 981 then turns northward, meeting U.S. Route 30 outside Latrobe, near the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport. The route then continues northward through Latrobe, passing by Saint Vincent College in Latrobe. Continuing northward, Route 981 meets U.S. Route 119 and U.S. Route 22 at New Alexandria, Pennsylvania. The route then ends at Pennsylvania Route 819 near Salina.

Pennsylvania Route 981 previously ended at Pennsylvania Route 156, but was extended in 1998 to its current terminus at Pennsylvania Route 819.

PennDOT began construction in 2006 to improve the intersection between Pennsylvania Route 981 and U.S. Route 30 near Latrobe.

The entire route is in Westmoreland County.