Objective: To examine independent food purchasing behavior and influence factors among primary and secondary school students, and to provide evidence for formulating and implementing corresponding intervention measures. Methods: Using a two stage stratified random cluster sampling principle, 976 primary and secondary school students in Haidian District of Beijing were selected to participate in a questionnaire survey from March to May 2021, and students independent food purchases and associated factors were considered. Results: The proportion of middle school students who often purchased food independently (22.79%) was higher than that of primary school students(16.77%)( χ 2=5.58， P <0.05). The proportion of middle school students and primary school students who sometimes purchased food independently was 66.32% and 60.33%, respectively( χ 2=3.78， P >0.05). The proportion of middle school students who never purchased food independently (10.88%) was lower than that of primary school students(22.90%)( χ 2=25.10， P <0.05). The proportion of middle school students and primary school students who often purchased food with their parents was 30.80% and 32.52%, respectively( χ 2=0.33， P >0.05). The factors that primary and secondary school students often considered when purchasing food included personal factors (e.g., physical and psychological factors), family factors, social factors, and the food itself. The top five factors that middle school students often considered when purchasing food were taste, hygiene, production date, student s mood, and advertisement. The top five factors that primary school students often considered when purchasing food were hygiene, taste, production date, advertising, and quality. The proportion of students with consideration of nutritional value, calorie level and collocation type, as well as other nutritional factors, when purchasing food was low, no significant differences were observed between primary and middle school students( χ 2=3.25，2.93，3.06， P >0.05). Conclusion Independent food purchasing behavior is prevalent among primary and secondary school students. Nutritional awareness among middle and primary school students is low. Effective and comprehensive nutrition interventions should be actively carried out for primary and secondary school students, while considering multiple dimensions such as schools, families and society, so as to encourage students to adopt a healthy diet.