Objective To systematically review the incidence and risk factors of postoperative urinary retention (POUR) in patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty, and provide a theoretical basis for medical staff to assess and identify high-risk groups in advance. Methods PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, Medline, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Data, VIP database, and SinoMed were electronically searched from the establishment of the databases to January 2023, for literature on the incidence and risk factors of POUR in patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty. Two researchers independently screened studies, extracted data, and assessed study quality. Meta-analysis was performed using Stata 14.0 software. Results A total of 21 articles were included, including 9041 patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty. The results of meta-analysis showed that the incidence of POUR in patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty was 26% [95% confidence interval (CI) (19%, 32%)]. Age [odds ratio (OR)=1.03, 95%CI (1.00, 1.05), P=0.03], male [OR=2.68, 95%CI (1.72, 4.18), P<0.001], infusion volume [OR=2.17, 95%CI (1.08, 4.35), P=0.030], spinal anesthesia [OR=1.72, 95%CI (1.29, 2.30), P<0.001], history of urinary retention/urethral stricture [OR=1.84, 95%CI (1.35, 2.49), P<0.001], use of analgesic pump [OR=4.73, 95%CI (2.29, 9.78), P<0.001], use of glycopyrronium bromide [OR=2.79, 95%CI (1.53, 5.11), P=0.001] were risk factors for POUR in patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty. Conclusions The incidence of POUR in patients undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty is relatively high. Age, male, infusion volume, spinal anesthesia, history of urinary retention/urethral stenosis, use of analgesia pump, and use of glycopyrronium bromide are causes of POUR. It is suggested that medical staff should identify the risk of related factors and take early intervention to reduce the occurrence of POUR.