An image pickup unit for endoscope of the invention includes: an image pickup device including on a front face thereof a plurality of electrode pads aligned along one side face of the image pickup device and a circuit substrate having an end face from which a lead group is extended, a distal end portion of the lead group being bonded to the plurality of electrode pads, wherein the end face of the circuit substrate is disposed more rearward than a rear face of the image pickup device, the lead group includes one or more first leads constituted of at least one of a lead connected to an image pickup device reference electric potential and a dummy lead which does not include an electrical function, and other second leads, and a shortest distance between the one or more first leads and an edge portion where the rear face and the side face of the image pickup device intersect is shorter than a shortest distance between all of the second leads and the edge portion.
