Objective To systematically review the efficacy and safety of umeclidinium/vilanterol in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Methods PubMed, The Cochrane Library, WanFang Data, CNKI and VIP databases were electronically searched to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about umeclidinium/vilanterol for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease from inception to March 2017. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Then, meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. Results Eight RCTs involving 8 992 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that: (1) umeclidinium/vilanterol vs. placebo: umeclidinium/vilanterol could significantly improve Trough FEV1 (MD=0.20, 95%CI 0.17 to 0.23, P<0.000 01) and the quality of life: TDI score (MD=0.99, 95%CI 0.71 to 1.28,P<0.000 01), SGRQ score (MD=–4.00, 95%CI –5.35 to –2.66,P<0.000 01), SOBDA score (MD=–0.16, 95%CI –0.23 to –0.09,P<0.000 01), and reduce the use of rescue drugs (salbutamol), while not increase the adverse events. (2) umeclidinium/vilanterolvs. fluticasone propionate/salmeterol: UMEC/VI could improve lung function in patients with COPD: Trough FEV1 (MD=0.09, 95%CI 0.07 to 0.11, P<0.000 01), reduce the use of rescue drugs (salbutamol), and had lower adverse events. But there was no significant difference in the quality of life between two groups. (3) umeclidinium/vilanterolvs. single bronchodilator: umeclidinium/vilanterol could significantly improve spirometric parameters: Trough FEV1 (MD=0.08, 95%CI 0.07 to 0.10, P<0.000 01), and the quality of life: TDI score (MD=0.38, 95%CI 0.17 to 0.59,P=0.000 3), SGRQ score (MD=–1.18, 95%CI –2.06 to –0.29, P=0.009). Umeclidinium/vilanterol could significantly reduce the use of rescue drugs (salbutamol) without increasing the adverse events. Conclusion UMEC/VI is superior to placebo in the treatment of COPD patients, which can significantly improve lung function, control symptoms and improve the quality of life, with good safety and tolerance. Compared with salmeterol/fluticacin, UMEC/VI has a significant effect on improving lung function and controlling symptoms without increasing adverse effects, while UMEC/VI is easier to use with better patient compliance. UMEC/VI is superior to bronchodilator alone in improving lung function, controlling symptoms and improving the quality of life without increasing the incidence of adverse events. Due to limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high-quality studies are required to verify above conclusions.