[Objective] To analyze the growth rule of literature, core authors, core institutions and Co-word Analysis in the field of methotrexate in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, to draw the knowledge map of key words and the cooperation network of authors, and to get the current frontiers and research hotspots through the research and analysis of these indicators, so as to provide reference for future researchers to choose research directions. [Methods] The three databases including CNKI, Wanfangdata and Cqvip were used as retrieval databases, and the key words of "rheumatoid arthritis" and "methotrexate" and their synonyms were used as retrieval keywords. The literature published in the three databases from 2009 to 2018 were retrieved and analyzed by bibliometrics analysis method. [Result] 2404 valid literature were screened out. The growth curve of literature showed a relatively stable upward trend, and formed a stable core group of high-yield authors. The main direction of research in this field in the past ten years was the effectiveness analysis of methotrexate combined with drug treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. [Conclusion] Domestic research on methotrexate in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis will continue to be the focus of medical research in the next few years. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic immune disease. Its early manifestations are mainly joint pain and dysfunction. It can lead to joint function loss and accompanied by atrophy of bone and skeletal muscle. It has a high disability rate and seriously threatens human physical and mental health [1].The incidence of rheumatoid arthritis was higher in women than in men [2]. According to statistics, the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis in China is between 0.32% and 0.36% [3]. Therefore, searching for drugs with less side effects and obvious effects is a research hotspot in the medical field [4]. Methotrexate, as a gold standard antirheumatic drug, has been widely used in combination therapy and randomized controlled clinical trials [5]. In order to clearly understand the research and development trend of methotrexate in the field of rheumatoid arthritis, this paper makes bibliometric analysis of the relevant literature published in this field in the past 10 years, and provides reference for the future research and development of this field with objective and real data.