Magdalena Maleeva was the defending champion but lost in the first round to Kimberly Po.
Martina Hingis won in the final 6–2, 6–0 against Monica Seles.
Seeds A champion seed is indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which that seed was eliminated. The top four seeds received a bye to the second round.
Monica Seles (final) Lindsay Davenport (quarterfinals) Martina Hingis (champion) Mary Joe Fernández (second round) Brenda Schultz-McCarthy (semifinals) Magdalena Maleeva (first round) Chanda Rubin (first round) Karina Habšudová (first round)
Draw
Final
Section 1
Section 2
External links 1996 Bank of the West Classic Draw