Objective To evaluate the association between pressure-controlled ventilation-volume guaranteed (PCV-VG) mode and volume-controlled ventilation (VCV) mode on postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) in patients undergoing thoracoscopic lung resection. Methods A retrospective cohort analysis of 329 patients undergoing elective thoracoscopic lung resection in West China Hospital of Sichuan University between September 2020 and March 2021 was conducted, including 213 females and 116 males, aged 53.6±11.3 years. American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade wasⅠ-Ⅲ. The patients who received lung-protective ventilation strategy during anesthesia were divided into a PCV-VG group (n=165) and a VCV group (n=164) according to intraoperative ventilation mode. Primary outcome was the incidence of PPCs during hospitalization. Results A total of 73 (22.2%) patients developed PPCs during hospitalization. The PPCs incidence of PCV-VG and VCV was 21.8% and 22.6%, respectively (RR=0.985, 95%CI 0.569-1.611, P=0.871). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that there was no statistical difference in the incidence of PPCs between PCV-VG and VCV mode during hospitalization (OR=0.846, 95%CI 0.487-1.470, P=0.553). Conclusion Among patients undergoing thoracoscopic lung resection, intraoperative ventilation mode (PCV-VG or VCV) is not associated with the risk of PPCs during hospitalization.