[Objective] By studying the vegetation coverage changes with elevation, slope degree and aspect in upstream watershed of Minjiang River, we aim to provide support for eco-environment improvement and soil erosion control in favorable terrain in the area.[Methods] With the support of GIS and RS, we extracted vegetation coverage and topographic factors from Landsat-8 OLI remote sensing images and DEM data, and then overlaid them. The statistical samples were constructed to analyze the correlation between vegetation coverage and topographic factors.[Results] Firstly, the vegetation coverage in study area was overall in good condition and the area of the medium and above vegetation coverage accounted for 75.0% while low vegetation coverage area is only 15.2%. Secondly, vegetation coverage decreased with the increase of elevations and slopes after the initial increasing, the maximum value ocurred at the elevation of 2 500~3 000 m and the slope of 25°~45°. The vegetation coverage in sunny slopes was slightly higher than that in shady slopes. Lastly, the topographical factors may produced different effects in areas with different vegetation coverage. In areas with low vegetation coverage, the slope degree exerted significant influence while the influence of elevations was significant in areas with extremely high vegetation coverage. There was no significant correlation between other vegetation coverage and topographical factors, which revealed a complex relationship between vegetation and terrains in upstream watershed of Minjiang River.[Conclusion] The vegetation coverage is closely related to the topographic factors in upstream watershed of Minjiang River, and the change of topographic factors has an important impact on the ecological environment.