Abstract: Objective To understand the rank of death causes in the residents in Taiyuan and provide evidence for the community health service and reasonable allocation of health resources in health program. Methods The death surveillance data in the residents in Taiyuan from 2005 to 2009 was collected, the death causes were classified according to the international classification of disease, 10th edition (ICD-10), and the death causes were ranked according the death numbers of diseases. Death cause statistical analysis was based on underlying death cause Results The first 10 death causes were ischemic heart disease, cerebral hemorrhage, cerebral infarction, lung cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases, stomach cancer, diabetes, liver cancer, traffic injury and pulmonary heart disease, the deaths caused by these diseases accounted for 58.78%. The age, gender and area specific differences on the death cause ranks were observed. Conclusion The death cause ranks in the residents in Taiyuan varied by age, gender and area, close attention should be paid to it. It is necessary to take targeted intervention in the residents in Taiyuan to reduce the threat of disease to people's health.