Objective To measure the content of trace heavy metal in the medicinal leech and provide references for quality control.Methods In this study, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to determine the content of 6 heavy metal elements in different parts of the medicinal leeches from various places of origin.Results Content of mercury, lead and cadmium of leeches from different habitats met the current national standards, arsenic in some samples is beyond the current national standard, while the content of cuprum and chromium in medicinal leeches exceeded the current national standards.There were significant differences in trace heavy metal amount in different parts of the leeches.Most heavy metal accumulated at tail, some at middle part, and less at head.Conclusion The results suggest there are significant differences in heavy mental content among medicinal leeches from different places of origin and different parts of leeches.This study provides important references for quality control of medicinal leeches.