It is of great significance to study the consumption cognition and purchasing behavior of urban residents in southern Jiangsu on rice knowledge and brand rice, for reflecting the market demand of brand rice in economically developed regions, leading the rice industry to improve the quality and efficiency and improve the effective supply, and promoting the high-quality development of rice industry in China. Based on 692 survey data of 5 cities in southern Jiangsu Province, the study obtained the following 4 results: first, the sample residents have insufficient understanding and knowledge of rice; second, the sample residents have a strong demand for high-end rice consumption and a good ability to pay premium; third, the sample residents pay more attention to the safety, reliability and cost performance of brand rice, well-known producing areas, excellent producing areas, qualified inspection reports and quality certification are regarded as effective quality assurance; fourth, cost-effective “quality certification + enterprise brand” rice is the most popular, the most effective promotion channel is “mobile terminal/short video”, combined with supermarket shelf display and tasting experience can achieve better results. On this basis, this paper further put forward the countermeasures and suggestions of increasing publicity and popularizing the knowledge of rice, building brands and jointly planning development, expanding functions and continuously improving quality.