OBJECTIVE To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of denosumab versus bisphosphonates in the treatment of osteoporosis， and to provide evidence-based reference for clinical treatment. METHODS Randomized controlled trials （RCTs） about denosumab （trial group） versus bisphosphonates （control group） in the treatment of osteoporosis were retrieved from PubMed， Embase， Medline， the Cochrane Library， Chinese Journal Fulltext Database， Chinese Science and Technology Journal Database， Wanfang database from January 2012 to December 2022. After the data extraction of included clinical studies， the quality of included studies was evaluated with Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Review 5.1.0， and meta-analysis was performed by using RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS A total of 6 RCTs were included， involving 3 145 patients. Meta-analysis showed that the improvement rate of lumbar bone mineral density （BMD） [MD＝1.78， 95%CI（1.13， 2.43）， P＜0.000 01]， femoral neck BMD [MD＝1.26， 95%CI （1.08， 1.45）， P＜0.000 01] and total hip BMD [MD＝1.16，95%CI（0.93，1.39），P＜0.000 01] in trial group were significantly better than control group. C-terminal telopeptide of type Ⅰ collagen after 6 months [MD＝－0.09， 95%CI （－0.16， －0.02）， P＝0.01] and N-terminal propeptide of type Ⅰ collagen after 12 months [MD＝－9.07， 95%CI （－11.22， －6.92）， P＜ 0.001] in trial group were significantly higher than control group. There was no statistical difference in the fracture incidence rate after 12 months [OR＝1.02， 95%CI （0.67，1.54）， P＝0.92] and the incidence of adverse reaction [OR＝0.99， 95%CI （0.67，1.46）， P＝0.97] between 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS Denosumab has more advantages in improving BMD and bone metabolism， compared with bisphosphonates.