ObjectiveTo explore the relationship between hand grip strength and depression and the moderating role of monthly household income level between grip strength and depression of community-dwelling female patients with type 2 diabetes.MethodsFrom March to June 2021, 3 communities in Chengdu were selected by convenience sampling method, and elderly female patients with type 2 diabetes were randomly selected from these communities. The patients were investigated through a self-made demographic and disease-related questionnaire and the Geriatric Depression Scale-15, and their grip strength was measured by a grip meter. The Process V3.3 plugin in SPSS 25.0 software was used to test the moderation effect.ResultsA total of 389 elderly female patients with type 2 diabetes were enrolled in this study. Spearman correlation analyses indicated that the grip strength was negatively correlated with the depression score (rs=?0.125, P=0.014), and positively correlated with the monthly household income level (rs=0.157, P=0.002); the depression score was negatively correlated with the monthly household income level (rs=?0.147, P=0.004). The results of the moderating effect showed that grip strength and monthly household income level could independently affect the patients’ depression scores [unstandardized partial regression coefficient (b)=?0.254, P=0.002; b=?1.552, P=0.009], and the interaction item of grip strength and monthly household income level was statistically significant for depression scores (b=0.065, P=0.031).ConclusionThe hand grip strength of community-dwelling elderly female patients with type 2 diabetes can negatively predict the level of depression, and the monthly household income level has a moderating effect between grip strength and depression.