Wireless communication systems, such as WLAN or Bluetooth receivers, employ preamble data to estimate the channel characteristics, introducing stringent settling-time constraints. This makes the use of traditional closed-loop feedback automatic gain control (AGC) circuits impractical for these applications. In this paper, a compact feedforward AGC circuit is proposed to obtain a fast-settling response. The AGC has been implemented in a 0.35 ${mu}m$ standard CMOS technology. Supplied at 1.8 V, it operates with a power consumption of 1.6 mW at frequencies as high as 100 MHz, while its gain ranges from 0 dB to 21 dB in 3 dB steps through a digital word. The settling time of the circuit is below 0.25 ${mu}s$.