Background and purpose: Carotid atherosclerosis, especially rupture of plaques, is related to cerebrovascular diseases. Non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) is relevant to cerebrovascular diseases and may be a potential risk factor. We designed this study to investigate the association between non-HDL-C and the prevalence of asymptomatic vulnerable carotid atherosclerotic plaques. Methods: We enrolled 2888 participants who underwent carotid atherosclerotic plaque detection and non-HDL-C measurement, with no history of taking lipid-lowering agents, from the Asymptomatic Polyvascular Abnormalities in Community study. We used multivariable logistic regression to estimate the association between non-HDL-C levels and the presence of asymptomatic vulnerable carotid atherosclerotic plaques. Results: In our study, 1505 subjects had asymptomatic vulnerable carotid atherosclerotic plaques and 1383 subjects had stable plaques. After adjustment for confounding factors, the odds ratios for vulnerable plaques of non-HDL-C levels in the middle and highest tertile groups were 1.02 (95% confidence interval, 0.84–1.23) and 1.50 (95% confidence interval, 1.23–1.82), respectively (P trend < 0.01). Conclusion: In our community-based observational and cross-sectional study, non-HDL-C level was a significant risk factor for the occurrence of asymptomatic vulnerable carotid plaques. © 2019 EAN