[Objective] The spatio-temporal evolution of land use patterns in Chongqing City was analyzed in order to provide a scientific basis for promoting the sustainable use of land resources and sustainable social and economic development in the region. [Methods] Remote sensing monitoring data of land use for Chongqing City (located in a mountainous high-density area) from 1995 to 2020 were quantitatively analyzed to determine the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of land use in Chongqing City from the aspects of quantitative structure and spatial layout. The driving forces of land use change in Chongqing City under different time scales were analyzed by geographical detectors. [Results] The rate of land use change in Chongqing City accelerated during the study period. The land used by urban and rural residents and the land used for industrial and mining construction continued to increase. The grassland area was greatly reduced and concentrated by the conversion to forest land. For 25 years, the degree of land use in Chongqing City has increased year by year, with the entire aera being in the development period. Hot spots of development were mainly concentrated in the main city and its surrounding areas. The density of paddy fields in Western Yuxi District decreased. The high-value density area of forest in Southeast Chongqing City increased, but the high-value density area of grassland decreased significantly. The high-density core of urban and rural residential land was located in the main urban area, and the high-density core of industrial and mining construction land exhibited a sattered distribution having a large growth rate. Socio-economic factors had a significant impact on land use change in Chongqing City, of which population density was the dominant factor. [Conclusion] Regional differences in land use change in Chongqing City were observed over time, and land use change was mainly affected by socio-economic factors.