diff --git a/core/src/main/scala/cats/data/Kleisli.scala b/core/src/main/scala/cats/data/Kleisli.scala
index ad3b1f86cd..43939e81e8 100644
--- a/core/src/main/scala/cats/data/Kleisli.scala
+++ b/core/src/main/scala/cats/data/Kleisli.scala
@@ -83,7 +83,11 @@ final case class Kleisli[F[_], A, B](run: A => F[B]) { self =>
   def apply(a: A): F[B] = run(a)
 }
 
-object Kleisli extends KleisliInstances with KleisliFunctions with KleisliExplicitInstances {
+object Kleisli
+    extends KleisliInstances
+    with KleisliFunctions
+    with KleisliFunctionsBinCompat
+    with KleisliExplicitInstances {
 
   /**
    * Internal API — shifts the execution of `run` in the `F` context.
@@ -143,6 +147,31 @@ sealed private[data] trait KleisliFunctions {
     Kleisli(f.andThen(fa.run))
 }
 
+sealed private[data] trait KleisliFunctionsBinCompat {
+
+  /**
+   * Lifts a natural transformation of effects within a Kleisli
+   * to a transformation of Kleislis.
+   *
+   * Equivalent to running `mapK(f) on a Kleisli.
+   *
+   * {{{
+   * scala> import cats._, data._
+   * scala> val f: (List ~> Option) = λ[List ~> Option](_.headOption)
+   *
+   * scala> val k: Kleisli[List, String, Char] = Kleisli(_.toList)
+   * scala> k.run("foo")
+   * res0: List[Char] = List(f, o, o)
+   *
+   * scala> val k2: Kleisli[Option, String, Char] = Kleisli.liftFunctionK(f)(k)
+   * scala> k2.run("foo")
+   * res1: Option[Char] = Some(f)
+   * }}}
+   * */
+  def liftFunctionK[F[_], G[_], A](f: F ~> G): Kleisli[F, A, ?] ~> Kleisli[G, A, ?] =
+    λ[Kleisli[F, A, ?] ~> Kleisli[G, A, ?]](_.mapK(f))
+}
+
 sealed private[data] trait KleisliExplicitInstances {
 
   def endoSemigroupK[F[_]](implicit FM: FlatMap[F]): SemigroupK[λ[α => Kleisli[F, α, α]]] =
diff --git a/tests/src/test/scala/cats/tests/KleisliSuite.scala b/tests/src/test/scala/cats/tests/KleisliSuite.scala
index f3713ed477..f2f79300b4 100644
--- a/tests/src/test/scala/cats/tests/KleisliSuite.scala
+++ b/tests/src/test/scala/cats/tests/KleisliSuite.scala
@@ -231,6 +231,13 @@ class KleisliSuite extends CatsSuite {
     }
   }
 
+  test("liftFunctionK consistent with mapK") {
+    val t: List ~> Option = λ[List ~> Option](_.headOption)
+    forAll { (f: Kleisli[List, Int, Int], i: Int) =>
+      (f.mapK(t).run(i)) should ===(Kleisli.liftFunctionK(t)(f).run(i))
+    }
+  }
+
   test("flatMapF") {
     forAll { (f: Kleisli[List, Int, Int], t: Int => List[Int], i: Int) =>
       f.run(i).flatMap(t) should ===(f.flatMapF(t).run(i))