The crystal structure of title compound, [Yb(NO(3))(3)(C(15)H(15)NO(2))(2)]·H(2)O, contains two Schiff base 2-[(4-methyl-phen-yl)imino-meth-yl]-6-methoxy-phenol (HL) ligands, three independent nitrate ions that chelate to the ytterbium(III) ion in an O,O'-bidentate manner and an uncoordinated water mol-ecule. The coordination number of the Yb(III) ion is eight. The HL ligands chelate with a strong Yb-O(phenolate) bond and a weak Yb-O(meth-oxy) contact. The latter augments the coordination polyhedron to give a YbO(10) bicapped square antiprism. Classical inter-molecular O-H⋯O and N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds as well as weak C-H⋯O contacts contribute to the stability of the structure.