Objective To investigate the situation of drinking water quality in rural areas of Anhui province, and to provide scientific basis for strengthening the monitoring of drinking water quality. Methods According to the "National Sanitary Surveillance Scheme for Rural Drinking Water Projects", we selected the counties and the monitoring points (the water factories) in Anhui province. Each monitoring point measured the factory water and terminal tap water in the dry and wet season respectively. Results Totally 34 193 drinking water samples were tested from 2008 to 2013 in Anhui rural area, and the overall water quality qualified rate was 49.4% (16 902 qualified samples).The qualified rate of water quality had increased year by year, from 30.1% in 2008 to 62.5% in 2013(trend χ²=1017, P<0.001). The dry season water quality qualified rate was significantly higher than that in the wet season(χ²=60.00, P<0.001).The factory water quality qualified rate was significantly higher than that of the tap water (χ²=24.62, P<0.001). The surface water quality rate was significantly higher than that in groundwater (χ²=296.99,P<0.001). The lowest qualified rate indexes were total coli group, thermotolerant coliforms group and total bacterial count. Conclusion The qualified rate of drinking water in rural areas of Anhui province was low, and the quality rate of microbial indicators was lowest. There were some risks in rural drinking water in Anhui province.