The invention provides a method for preparing 1,3-propylene glycol by means of methyl 3-methoxypropionate, and relates to the field of chemical synthesis. Aiming at the problems that for an existing method, the technology condition is high, a reaction is harsh, and operation is complex, methyl 3-methoxypropionate serves as the main raw material, methyl 3-methoxypropionate is obtained through a hydrogenation reaction, demethylation is conducted, and reaction is conducted with hydroiodic acid, a target product 1,3-propylene glycol and methyl iodide are obtained, methyl iodide is subjected to catalytic cracking finally, and hydroiodic acid is obtained, wherein hydroiodic acid is reused in the demethylation process. For the whole scheme, the synthetic route is short, reaction selectivity is good, the cost is low, the yield is high, the quality is high, raw material resources are simple, the method does not refer to high temperature and high pressure, the technology is safe and reliable, operability is high, and the influence on the environment is low.