Based on the data from the 131 meteorology stations in the Yangtze River Basin, the study was conducted by using the Mann -Kendall nonparametric test, principal component analysis and R/S analysis, to reveal the spatial and temporal variation characteristics of the extreme precipitation in the Yangtze River Basin. The results indicate: (1) The main extreme precipitation indices showed a trend of increase during 1970-2014, the main extreme precipitation index showed a lasting trend of decline after the 1970s while bigger and more unstable decade-on-decade variations should be noted since the 1980s. (2) The most part Poyang Lake Basin and the downstream area of the Dongting Lake face the increased heavy precipitation. (3) Also there is a good correlation between the extreme precipitation index which all pass the 0.05 significance level test, except for the weak precipitation indices. (4) The main characteristics of the Yangtze River Basin precipitation is the barely noticeable change of weak precipitation, vast change for extreme precipitation change, unstable precipitation process and the high risk of flood.