The study aimed to examine the association between ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) metrics and depression. We conducted a population-based, cross-sectional study of 6,851 participants aged 20 years or older (3,525 men and 3,326 women) living in Tangshan City, China. Information on the seven CVH metrics (including smoking, body mass index, dietary intake, physical activity, blood pressure, total cholesterol and fasting blood glucose) was collected via questionnaires, physical examination and laboratory test. Depression status was assessed using the Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and a score of 16 or above was considered depression. The relationship between CVH metrics and depression was analyzed using logistic regression. Of the 6,851 participants, 525 (7.7%) were in depression status. After adjustment for potential confounders, men in the highest quartile of ideal CVH metric summary score had a reduced likelihood of having depression compared to those in the lowest quartile (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 0.46, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.28-0.75, p = 0.002). A similar trend was found among women, even though the association was not significant (AOR = 0.74, 95% CI: 0.46-1.18, p = 0.211). This study suggested that better CVH status is associated with a lower risk of depression especially in Chinese male and young population.