This study was conducted in order to understand the current status of microbial contamination on instant food in Jiaxing City, identify the high-risk food and provide scientific basis for the prevention and control of foodborne disease.Methods 8 kinds of frequently consumed instant food were collected from farmers' markets, supermarkets and restaurants for microbial contamination detection. Results 56 pathogen strains were identified in 640 food samples,with positive rate of 8.75%. Among the positive samples, the detection rate of Vibrio parahaemolyticus was the highest (69.64%), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (14.29%), Listeria monocytogenes (8.93%), Bacillus cereus (5.36%) and Vibrio vulnificus (1.79%). The peak season of pathogen contamination was the third season with detection rate of 12.50%. High contamination rate was found in foods from farmers' markets, bulk food and aquatic products, with detection rate of 17.60%, 13.30% and 25.00%, respectively.Conclusion There was a potentially high risk of microbial contaminations on instant foods in Jiaxing City. Measures should be taken such as more stringent health supervision, better practices in food operation and more food hygiene publicity to the public, which could help to reduce the risk of foodborne diseases.