Investigation of residues of eight main heavy metal(Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Hg, As, Se and Cr) content in the muscle of cultured Monopterus albus collected from Jianghan Plain during the years of 2012—2013 was conducted to evaluate the status of food safety. The investigation covered ten different points or cities distributed in the main production region. As a result, the residue levels for Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Hg, As, Se and Cr were in the range of 220.11~394.39, 9 644.00~19 377.53, 0~239.30, 1.05~12.38, 0.49~4.46, 91.19~274.54, 371.02~1 106.94 and 826.73~2 247.96 μg/kg, respectively. The residue levels were below the tolerance limit levels established by the Ministry of Health of China, with the exception of Cr in the samples from Shishou City.Variance analysis showed that the residue of Zn was the highest among the eight heavy metal elements. Only a significant positive correlation (P<0.01) was detected between Cu content and Zn content in the muscle of Monopterus albus. The Se load ratio in the muscle of Monopterus albus was the highest among the eight heavy metal elements from Qiangjiang, Shashi, Gongan, Jianli and Zhijiang, and the Cr was the highest from the other sampling sites. Average pollution index suggested that all the sampling sites suffered from mild pollution except Xiantao which was below the normal background level. This study appraised the safety of consumption of Monopterus albus from Jianghan Plain from the viewpoint of heavy metal contents, and provided reference for the relevant departments in formulating measures.