ObjectiveTo evaluate the diagnostic accuracy and efficacy of X-ray for evaluating the tip position of umbilical venous catheterization (UVC). MethodsThe PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, CBM, CNKI, VIP and WanFang Data databases were electronically searched to collect diagnostic tests for UVC tip localisation from inception to 1 May 2023. Two reviewers independently screened the literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted the data and assessed the quality of the studies using the QUADAS-2 tool. Then, meta-analysis was performed by using Stata 16.0 software. Results Twelve articles involving 1 055 patients were included. The sensitivity and specificity of Negar Yazdani’s study were both 100%. The results of the meta-analysis (the remaining eleven articles, n=951) indicated a pooled sensitivity of 0.7 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.8), a pooled specificity of 0.8 (95%CI 0.7 to 0.9), a positive likelihood ratio of 4.0 (95%CI 2.0 to 8.1), a negative likelihood ratio of 0.4 (95%CI 0.2 to 0.6) and a diagnostic odds ratio of 11 (95%CI 3 to 36) with an area under the cumulative receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.8 (95%CI 0.8 to 0.9). A subgroup analysis was performed according to the different methods of judging X, the 8th–9th thoracic, the 9th–10th thoracic and combined judgement of the diaphragmatic plane + the vertebral body + the heart shadow. The sensitivities of the 3 groups were 0.8 (95%CI 0.5 to 0.9), 0.5 (95%CI 0.4 to 0.7) and 0.8 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.9); the specificities of the 3 groups were 0.8 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.9), 0.76 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.9) and 0.91 (95%CI 0.79 to 0.96). The areas under the cumulative receiver operating characteristic curve were 0.9 (95%CI 0.8 to 0.9), 0.7 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.7) and 0.92 (95%CI 0.89 to 0.94). ConclusionSome error is present when determining the catheter tip position by X-ray, in which the evaluation of the umbilical vein catheter tip position through a comprehensive evaluation of the diaphragmatic plane, the heart margin and the vertebral body is more powerful than the evaluation of the vertebral body alone.