Objective To explore the clinical effect of glycolic acid peels combined with intense pulsed light in the treatment of chloasma. Methods Sixty patients with chloasma who were treated in our hospital from June 2021 to June 2022 were selected as the research objects. They were divided into control group and study group by random number table method, with 30 cases in each group. The control group was treated with intense pulsed light, and the study group was treated with glycolic acid peels combined with intense pulsed light. The clinical efficacy, skin condition, serum oxide level and adverse reactions were compared between the two groups. Results The total effective rate of treatment in the study group was 96.67%, which was higher than 76.67% in the control group (P<0.05). After 3 months of treatment, the scores of skin status in the two groups were higher than those before treatment, and those in the study group were higher than the control group (P<0.05). The level of SOD in the two groups after 3 months of treatment were higher than those before treatment, and that in the study group was higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). After 3 months of treatment, the levels of MAD and TYR in the two groups were lower than those before treatment, and those in the study group were lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups (P>0.05).Conclusion Glycolic acid peels combined with intense pulsed light has a good clinical effect in the treatment of chloasma, which can effectively inhibit the increase of serum oxidation level, improve the skin condition of patients, and has good application safety.