The Algeria–Western Sahara border extends for 39 km and is based on the former colonial borders between French Algeria and Spanish Morocco. The boundary follows the meridian of 8° 40′ west. The boundary was delimited and demarcated by a Franco–Spanish boundary commission in the early 1900s and again from 1956–1958 and is marked by two boundary markers.

The status of Western Sahara is disputed, as Morocco claims the entire territory, while the indigenous population of Western Sahara, the Sahrawi, assert that the territory should become an independent state. A long-standing conflict is ongoing between the Moroccan government and the representatives of the Sahrawi, known as the Polisario Front. Algeria has provided both direct and indirect support to the Polisario Front and shares close ties with the Sahrawi, which has exacerbated tensions surrounding the dispute.