diff --git a/library/data/set/default.lean b/library/data/set/default.lean
index b10e1aead6..2169b5d1d0 100644
--- a/library/data/set/default.lean
+++ b/library/data/set/default.lean
@@ -3,4 +3,4 @@ Copyright (c) 2014 Jeremy Avigad. All rights reserved.
 Released under Apache 2.0 license as described in the file LICENSE.
 Author: Jeremy Avigad
 -/
-import .basic .function .map
+import .basic .function .map .finite
diff --git a/library/data/set/finite.lean b/library/data/set/finite.lean
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..c94a99280d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/library/data/set/finite.lean
@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+/-
+Copyright (c) 2014 Jeremy Avigad. All rights reserved.
+Released under Apache 2.0 license as described in the file LICENSE.
+Author: Jeremy Avigad
+
+The notion of "finiteness" for sets. This approach is not computational: for example, just because
+an element  s : set A  satsifies  finite s  doesn't mean that we can compute the cardinality. For
+a computational representation, use the finset type.
+
+-/
+import data.set.function data.finset logic.choice
+open [coercions] finset nat
+
+variable {A : Type}
+
+namespace set
+
+definition finite [class] (s : set A) : Prop := ∃ (s' : finset A), s = finset.to_set s'
+
+theorem finite_of_finset [instance] (s : finset A) : finite s :=
+exists.intro s rfl
+
+noncomputable definition finset_of_finite (s : set A) [fins : finite s] : finset A := some fins
+
+theorem to_set_of_finset_of_finite (s : set A) [fins : finite s] :
+  finset.to_set (finset_of_finite s) = s :=
+eq.symm (some_spec fins)
+
+-- this casts every set to a finite set
+noncomputable definition to_finset (s : set A) : finset A :=
+if fins : finite s then finset_of_finite s else finset.empty
+
+theorem to_set_of_to_finset_of_finite (s : set A) [fins : finite s] :
+  finset.to_set (to_finset s) = s :=
+by rewrite [↑set.to_finset, dif_pos fins]; apply to_set_of_finset_of_finite
+
+theorem to_set_of_to_finset_of_not_finite {s : set A} (nfins : ¬ finite s) : to_finset s = ∅ :=
+by rewrite [↑set.to_finset, dif_neg nfins]
+
+theorem to_finset_of_to_set (s : finset A) : to_finset (finset.to_set s) = s :=
+by rewrite [finset.eq_eq_to_set_eq, to_set_of_to_finset_of_finite s]
+
+/- finiteness -/
+
+theorem finite_empty [instance] : finite (∅ : set A) :=
+exists.intro finset.empty (by rewrite [finset.to_set_empty])
+
+theorem finite_insert [instance] (a : A) (s : set A) [fins : finite s] : finite (insert a s) :=
+exists.intro (finset.insert a (finset_of_finite s))
+  (by rewrite [finset.to_set_insert, to_set_of_finset_of_finite])
+
+example : finite '{1, 2, 3} := _
+
+theorem finite_union [instance] (s t : set A) [fins : finite s] [fint : finite t] :
+  finite (s ∪ t) :=
+exists.intro (#finset finset_of_finite s ∪ finset_of_finite t)
+  (by rewrite [finset.to_set_union, *to_set_of_finset_of_finite])
+
+theorem finite_inter [instance] (s t : set A) [fins : finite s] [fint : finite t] :
+  finite (s ∩ t) :=
+exists.intro (#finset finset_of_finite s ∩ finset_of_finite t)
+  (by rewrite [finset.to_set_inter, *to_set_of_finset_of_finite])
+
+theorem finite_filter [instance] (s : set A) (p : A → Prop) [h : decidable_pred p]
+    [fins : finite s] :
+  finite {x ∈ s | p x}  :=
+exists.intro (finset.filter p (finset_of_finite s))
+  (by rewrite [finset.to_set_filter, *to_set_of_finset_of_finite])
+
+theorem finite_image [instance] {B : Type} [h : decidable_eq B] (f : A → B) (s : finset A)
+    [fins : finite s] :
+  finite (f '[s]) :=
+exists.intro (finset.image f (finset_of_finite s))
+  (by rewrite [finset.to_set_image, *to_set_of_finset_of_finite])
+
+theorem finite_diff [instance] (s t : set A) [fins : finite s] : finite (s \ t) :=
+!finite_filter
+
+theorem finite_subset {s t : set A} [fint : finite t] (ssubt : s ⊆ t) : finite s :=
+by rewrite (eq_filter_of_subset ssubt); apply finite_filter
+
+/- cardinality -/
+
+noncomputable definition card (s : set A) := finset.card (set.to_finset s)
+
+theorem card_of_finset (s : finset A) : card s = finset.card s :=
+by rewrite [↑card, to_finset_of_to_set]
+
+theorem card_add_card (s₁ s₂ : set A) [fins₁ : finite s₁] [fins₂ : finite s₂] :
+  card s₁ + card s₂ = card (s₁ ∪ s₂) + card (s₁ ∩ s₂) :=
+begin
+  rewrite [-to_set_of_to_finset_of_finite s₁, -to_set_of_to_finset_of_finite s₂],
+  rewrite [-finset.to_set_union, -finset.to_set_inter, *card_of_finset],
+  apply finset.card_add_card
+end
+
+end set
diff --git a/library/data/set/set.md b/library/data/set/set.md
index 3ad4d1eaf6..5a5c4e1733 100644
--- a/library/data/set/set.md
+++ b/library/data/set/set.md
@@ -4,6 +4,8 @@ data.set
 Subsets of an arbitrary type.
 
 * [basic](basic.lean) : unions, intersections, etc.
+* [comm_semiring](comm_semiring.lean)
 * [function](function.lean) : functions from one set to another
 * [map](map.lean) : set functions bundled with their domain and codomain
+* [finite](finite.lean) : the "finite" predicate on sets
 * [classical_inverse](classical_inverse.lean) : inverse functions, defined classically
\ No newline at end of file