Objective To investigate changes in corrected visual acuity (CVA) and refractive error after strabismus surgery. Methods Four groups of patients (n=133, 194 eyes) undergoing strabismus surgery at Beijing Tongren Hospital from December 16, 2013 to August 13, 2014 participated in this prospective study. Group 1 had one rectus recession (n=63, 102 eyes); Group 2 had one rectus recession combined with rectus resection on the antagonistic muscle (n=19, 27 eyes); Group 3 had one rectus recession combined with improved rectus linear tucking on the antagonistic muscle (n=40, 50 eyes); and Group 4 had one rectus recession combined with one oblique recession (n=11, 15 eyes). A two-way repeated measures ANOVA was used to examine the CVA and refractive error before surgery and at 1, 3, and 6 months after surgery. The amount and type of astigmatism were compared by chi-square test. Results There were no significant differences in preoperative CVA, spherical equivalent (SE), or astigmatism among the four groups. There were no significant differences in group, time, or interaction of CVA and SE. There were no significant differences in groups or in interactions, but there were significant differences in the groups at different time points (F=30.50, P＜0.001). The astigmatism increased at one and three months in all groups compared to preoperative levels (P＜0.05) but decreased 6 months after surgery compared to levels at one and three months postoperatively. The astigmatism ratios preoperatively and at 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively were 57%, 73%, 76%, and 62%, respectively. The ratio of astigmatism increased at one and three months after surgery (χ²=20.29, 19.80, P＜0.001), but there were no significant differences between the preoperative and the 6 months postoperative values. Conclusion CVA changes can be expected in the short term after strabismus surgery, especially increasing astigmatism. However, the refractive status can recover to preoperative levels over time．There were no significant variations between different surgical methods．