​This study presents the first investigation on the combustion chemistry of n-octanol, a long chain alcohol. Ignition delay times were determined experimentally in a high-pressure shock tube, and stable species concentration profiles were obtained in a jet stirred reactor for a range of initial conditions. A detailed kinetic model was developed to describe the oxidation of n-octanol at both low and high temperatures, and the model shows good agreement with the present dataset. The fuel’s combustion characteristics are compared to those of n-alkanes and to short chain alcohols to illustrate the effects of the hydroxyl moiety and the carbon chain length on important combustion properties. Finally, the results are discussed in detail.