Objective To investigate the characteristics of contrast-enhanced ultrasound of peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma and pulmonary adenocarcinoma by analyzing the patterns of contrast-enhanced ultrasound and the quantitative parameters of acoustic contrast. Methods The sonographic features of contrast-enhanced ultrasound of 52 cases with peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma and 58 cases with peripheral pulmonary adenocarcinoma were analyzed retrospectively, that confirmed by puncture biopsy after contrast-enhanced ultrasound. QLAB software was used to draw time-intensity curve (TIC) and the acoustic contrast quantitative parameters were recorded at the same time. Results 1. Inhomogeneous enhancement and hypo-enhancement were the main manifestations of contrast-enhanced ultrasound of the two groups of patients, the rate of occurrence in peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma were 76.9%, 86.5%, and 67.2%, 75.9% in peripheral pulmonary adenocarcinoma, respectively. 2. The main performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound of peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma were partial-whole enhancement mode (37/52), besides the showing of the overall enhancement and peripheral enhancement beginning type; the main performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound of peripheral pulmonary adenocarcinoma were peripheral enhancement beginning mode (33/58), besides the overall enhancement and the vascular morphology enhancement beginning pattern. 3. Local none-enhanced pattern was the characteristic manifestation of peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma, and the difference was statistically significant compared with pulmonary adenocarcinoma (P<0.05). 4. TIC curves of two groups were presented “spike type”, the main performance of peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma was “speed up and slow down”, while peripheral pulmonary adenocarcinoma was mainly manifested as “steep in rise and drop down”. AT and T? of peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma were both shorter than that of peripheral pulmonary adenocarcinoma, while α was greater than that of peripheral pulmonary adenocarcinoma, the differences between the two groups were statistically significant (P<0.05). The differences of TTP, RT, BI, EI, PI and β between the two groups were not statistically significant (P>0.05). Conclusions The analysis of the features of contrast-enhanced ultrasound and the differences of the quantitative parameters of acoustic contrast can provide certain significance in the diagnosis between peripheral pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma and pulmonary adenocarcinoma.