Objective To understand the plague literacy status among residents in the plague foci in Hebei province, and provide scientific basis for the health education strategies of plague. Methods Two hundred and eighty residents over the age of 18 were selected randomly for questionnaire survey in two communities of Kangbao county; The χ² test and Fisher's exact probability method were used to analyze the results. Results The overall level of health literacy related to plague of residents in Kangbao county was 32.26%. The percentages of residents who had the basic health knowledge and concept was 33.18%, healthy lifestyle and behavior was 52.53%, and health related skills was 11.06%. The differences of health literacy related to plague were statistically significant among residents in different sex groups (χ²=13.007, P<0.001), age groups (χ²=8.409, P=0.015), occupations groups (χ²=12.489, P=0.005), and level of education groups (χ²=44.717, P<0.001). Among them the women, over 60 years old, farmers, workers and low-education residents had low levels of health literacy. Conclusion In the future, we need to strengthen the health education of plague for the elderly, the workers and individuals withlower education level.