There are more than 1000 salt lakes situated in northern and western regions of China and 790 of these salt lakes are in Xinjiang Uigur Autonomous Region and Qinghai, Tibet, Inner Mongolia. To better understand halophilic archaeal diversity of salt lakes in Xinjiang, water and sediment samples were collected from two salt lakes, namely Aibi salt lake and Aiding salt lake, and the halophilic archaeal diversity of these samples was determined. Totally eighty-six halophilic archeal strains, of which 56 isolated from Aibi salt lake and 30 isolated from Aiding salt lake, were isolated respectively using CM agar medium. All the strains were subjected to 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis. Similarity analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences of all these strains indicated that the isolates from Aibi salt lake belong to 11 different species of genera Haloarcula, Halobacterium, Halorubrum, Haloterrigena, Natrinema and Natronorubrum, and that the isolates from Aiding salt lake belong to 8 different species of genera Haloarcula, Halobiforma, Halorubrum, Haloterrigena, Natrinema. Among the 86 strains, members of Natronorubrum Natrinema, Halorubrum and Haloterrigena, are dominant groups in Aibi salt lake. However, the dominant group in Aibi salt lake are the members of Natrinema, Halorubrum and Haloterrigena. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strains ABH13, ABH 14, ABH 15, ABH 18, ABH 31 and ABH 33 may represent a novel species of Natronorubrum; ABH12, ABH32 and AD30 two novel species of Halorubrum; ABH17 and ABH25, ABH51, ABH52, ABH56 two novel species of Haloterrigena respectively; strain ABH19 a novel species of Haloarcula; strain ABHO7 a novel species of Halobacterium. The Shannon-Wiener's index of Aibi salt lake is 1.899, the same index of Aiding salt lake is 1.317, which indicated that the biodiversity of halophilic archaea from Aibi salt lake was slightly higher than that of Aiding salt lake. Different characteristics in pH of salt concentrations, average annual precipitation, annual evaporation and mankind's impact on two salt lakes might play important roles on halophilic archaeal diversity of two salt lakes.