[Objective] Through the comparative analysis of water yielding capacity of the first five national parks in China, to explore the key driving force of each park, and to provide scientific basis for optimizing the ecological protection and water resource management of national parks. [Methods] Based on the InVEST model, we assessed the water yielding capacity of each national park from 2000 to 2023, combined with the coefficient of variation to analyze the stability of the water yielding capacity, and used the Partial Least Squares Path Model (PLS-PM) to quantitatively explore the functioning mechanism of the key driving force of each park. [Results] 1) From 2000 to 2023, the depth of water yield in the first national parks generally showed a fluctuating upward trend (except Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park). Among them, Wuyishan National Park has the largest depth of water yield (1609.13 mm) and the largest increase (k=9.34), while Sanjiangyuan National Park has the smaller depth of water yield (133.89 mm) and the most moderate increase (k=0.95). 2) The stability of the water yield of each park is as follows: Sanjiangyuan National Park > Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park > Giant Panda National Park > Wuyishan National Park > Northeastern Tiger and Leopard National Park. Park > Northeast Tiger and Leopard National Park. 3) The key driving forces of different parks differed significantly, showing different patterns of influence. Precipitation is the main positive factor affecting water yield, and it is significantly higher in Sanjiangyuan (0.9879) and Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park (0.8328) than in the other parks; potential evapotranspiration is generally negatively correlated with the depth of water yield, which is particularly significant in the Giant Panda (-0.4581) and Wuyishan National Park (-0.3485); and the impacts of vegetation cover and topography differ in different national parks. varied among different national parks. [Conclusions] The spatial and temporal patterns of water yield capacity in the first five national parks in China from 2000 to 2023 are obvious and stable, and their key driving forces are different and spatially heterogeneous.