OBJECTIVE To compare the effects of different drying processing methods in the producing area on the quality of Peucedanum praeruptorum， and screen the optimal drying processing in the producing area. METHODS P. praeruptorum was processed by traditional drying in the sun， drying in the shade， and modern drying processing methods such as electric heating and blast drying， vacuum drying， infrared drying， and vacuum freeze drying. Technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution （TOPSIS） method was used to perform the comprehensive quality evaluation using drying rate， water content， extract content， color chroma value， and the contents of 4 coumarins as indexes. RESULTS Under different drying processing methods， the drying rates of 12 samples of P. praeruptorum were 31.56%-40.10%； the moisture contents were 6.96%-8.58%， and the extract contents were 27.56%-43.10%； the color chroma values red green degree， yellow blue degree and brightness were 1.80-7.50， 19.90- 30.20， 46.90-59.90， respectively. The contents of umbelliferolactone， praeruptorin A， praeruptorin B and praeruptorin E were ≤ 0.05， 3.70-14.05， 0.72-2.37， 0.81-3.90 mg/g， respectively； and the total contents were 5.47-19.65 mg/g. The comprehensive score of P. praeruptorum was the highest under the condition of drying at 40 ℃ by electric heating and blast . CONCLUSIONS The drying method at 40 ℃ by electric heating and blast is the first choice for P. praeruptorum in the producing area.