Standard artificial diet was added with different concentration lead (Pb) to feed herbivorous insect Spodoptera litura larvae to study their growth and reproduction under the effects of Pb stress. With the increasing concentration Pb in the diet, the survival rate and body mass of the larvae at their different development stages (larvae, pupae, and adults) decreased. The minimum concentration of Pb which caused the significant decrease of the survival rate was 100 mg x kg(-1), and that caused a remarkable decrease of body mass was 50 mg x kg(-1). After fed with the diet containing 25-200 mg x kg(-1) of Pb, the duration of laying eggs was significantly shortened. With increasing concentration Pb in the diet, the oviposition rate and fecundity of female adults decreased significantly, the average mass of one thousand eggs was significantly less than that of the control, and the hatching rate of the eggs laid by adults was also decreased significantly. All the results suggested that Pb stress had significant inhibition effects on the growth and reproduction of S. litura.