This study aims to investigate the effects of leadership styles on middle school students' academic motivation levels. The research was conducted with a sample of 244 students randomly selected from two different schools in Bolu during the 2024-2025 academic year. The study follows a correlational survey model, and data were collected using the "Leadership Styles Scale" and the "Academic Motivation Scale." Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, and correlation analyses were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that the distributive leadership style had the most prominent effect on students. Additionally, the sustaining and laissez-faire leadership styles showed varying degrees of influence on students' academic motivation. However, no significant differences were found between demographic variables such as gender, parental education level, and number of siblings. While leadership styles were found to have a positive relationship with academic motivation, the strength of this relationship varied across different leadership styles. As a result, it is recommended that educators adopt the distributive leadership style more frequently to better support students' academic success. Furthermore, researchers are encouraged to explore the effects of leadership styles on students' academic motivation in more depth and make comparisons across different educational levels.