Objective To analyze the risk factors for surgical site infection (SSI) in patients with gastric cancer through Meta-analysis. Methods Data from relevant databases at home and abroad from Noviber 29, 2012 to Noviber 29, 2022 were retrieved. Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.4 software. Results A total of 17 articles were included, involving 13953 patients. Risk factors with statistical significance included male (OR=1.66), elderly (OR=1.96), body mass index (BMI) > 25 kg/m² (OR=2.70), diabetes (OR=2.41), tumor stage (OR=2.38), laparotomy (OR=2.04), duration of operation (OR=3.41), total gastrectomy (OR=1.97), and peri-operative blood transfusion (OR=3.71). Conclusion Patients with the following characteristics such as male, elderly, BMI > 25 kg/m², diabetes, tumor stage, laparotomy, duration of operation, total gastrectomy or peri-operative blood transfusion are prone to develop SSI, therefore, health care workers should pay more attention in SSI prevention.