Abstract: With the economic and social development，human beings have been concerning about the survival of their own living environment. Human settlement is a basis of human survival and development, and the concentrated expression of human civilization. Through applying the Comprehensive Assessment Model and 3S Technology, this paper systematically summarizes the theoretical basis and study the results of Residential Environment Evaluation which carried on  home and abroad. Based on grid data such as DEM, NDVI, the multiyear average temperature and precipitation, GDP, population, with the 1 km × 1 km grid scale, the spatial distribution trait is directly reflected of Residential Environment Suitability in the Hotan Prefecture. The results show that the index of suitability for Residential Environment in the Hotan Prefecture is from 1.139 to 4.495. In general, suitability of Residential Environment is decreased from the oasis which formed around the Hotan River and the Yutian River basins to the south mountains and north desert area，and  Increased from the mountains to the plain and from the northern desert to the separated oasis. Most parts of the Hotan Prefecture are affected by restrictions of natural environmental conditions. Considering the suitability of residential environment for the Hotan Prefecture, the proportion of high suitability area is the least, which accounts for 1.04% of the total study area, second ranked suitable area accounts for 5.94%, third ranked suitable area accounts for 21.13%, less suitable and not suitable areas accounts for 71.68 %. The highest population density areas are mainly concentrated in the central area of administrative region which locate in the Hotan River and Yutian River basins. The lowest suitable living environment for the study area is concentrated in the northern desert and southern high mountains, the region[JP8]’s[JP] population distribution and population density is relatively low or even zero. It indicates that the natural environment is extremely bad. In the whole study area except the oasis which has been developed, undeveloped pastoral zone has good natural development conditions and human settlements potential, but this region[JP8]’s[JP] ecological environment is rather fragile, so in the future the development planning requires a lot of consideration and demonstration.

Key words: Hotan Prefecture, living environment, suitability evaluation, natural environment