Objective To optimize the extraction process of collagen from the jellyfish (Nemopilema nomurai) and explore its characters. Methods The collagen was extracted with acetic acid and pepsin from jellyfish. The crude jellyfish collagen was purified by salting out and ultrafiltration. The purified collagen was characterized and analyzed by XRD (X-ray diffraction), UV (ultraviolet spectroscopy) and FTIR (fourier transform infrared spectroscopy). Results The purity of jellyfish collagen was 97%, the yield was 33% (dry weight). The jellyfish collagen maintained its triple helix structure during the extraction and purification process. Jellyfish collagen conformed to the characteristics of type I collagen according to amino acid composition and gel electrophoresis analysis. The jellyfish collagen exhibited a good solubility under the conditions of pH 3–5 and less than 0.9 mol/L of NaCl. Conclusion The extracted jellyfish collagen exhibited similar characteristics with bovine type I collagen and was a potential new source of collagen.