Abstract: Based on the patch data of rural settlements in Yunlong County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, located in the alpine valley region in 2003, 2013 and 2023, this paper systematically describes the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of rural settlement scale in the alpine valley area, analyzes the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of the influence of different factors through GTWR, and reveals the spatiotemporal effects of different influencing factors on the evolution of rural settlement scale in the alpine valley area. The main conclusions are as follows: 1) The scale of rural settlements expanded significantly over the past 20 years, and the regional characteristics were significant; It is mainly concentrated in the river valley basin and is distributed in a strip pattern. The development of settlement scale structure is uneven, and the differences are significant. 2) The influencing factors have different effects on the scale of rural settlements in Yunlong County, and there are obvious spatial and temporal differences. The influencing effects of natural environment, location environment and socioeconomic environment on the scale development of rural settlements in Yunlong County are consistent with the overall development trends observed in the county.