The present invention relates to an endoscope to perform observation using a plurality of image pick up units and an endoscope system including such an endoscope, and its object is to provide an endoscope and an endoscope system having a simplified structure and a reduced cost. There is provided an endoscope including a plurality of image pick up units (24a, 24b) to pick up an observation image, a connector (28) to be connected with an external device (46) to perform signal processing, and a switching circuit portion (26) electrically connected with each image pick up unit (24a, 24b) and the connector (28) and configured to switch the plurality of image pick up units (24a, 24b) so that one of the image pick up units (24a, 24b) transmits/receives a signal to/from the connector (28).
