Summary: The present study aimed to compare the clinical efficacy of a 0.4% carbomer gel and 1% carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) containing artificial tears in treatment of dry eye patients. Sixty subjects with mean age of 45.89 years who had symptoms and signs of dry eye were enrolled in this prospective, investigator-masked and stratified random sampling study. The subjects were divided into two parallel groups with 30 subjects (60 eyes) in each group. One group received carbomer gel,and the other group received 1% CMC containing artificial tears. Subjects received the drops 3 to 4 times or more per day for 3 months. At the first visit time, the precorneal residence time of these two drops was measured. The efficacy was assessed by comparing the subjective symptoms (ocular dryness, foreign body sensation, burning sensation and pain), and the objective test results of tears breakup time, Schirmers test and corneal fluorescein staining prior to the study and after the treatment. As a result, the ocular residence time of carbomer gel was significantly longer than that of 1% CMC (P