Mota is a Portuguese and Spanish surname. Notable people with the surname include:
João Soares da Mota Neto, Brazilian footballerJosé Mota (baseball) (born 1965), Dominican baseball player/broadcasterJosé Roberto Rodrigues Mota (born 1979), Brazilian football forwardJosé Mota (Portuguese footballer, born 1964), Portuguese football player/managerJosé Mota (Portuguese footballer, born 1919), former Portuguese football forwardJosé Sánchez Mota (born 1965), Spanish comedian and actorGuillermo Mota (born 1973), Dominican baseball playerManny Mota (born 1938), former Dominican MLB baseball playerMiraildes Maciel Mota (born 1978), Brazilian women's footballer better known as FormigaAna Bárbara (born Altagracia Ugalde Mota in 1971), Mexican singer-songwriterRosa Mota (born 1958), former Portuguese marathon runner