The invention relates to improved 40CrNiMo steel and a preparation method thereof, and belongs to the technical field of alloy steel. The improved 40CrNiMo steel comprises the following chemical elements in percentage by weight: 0.37 to 0.45 percent of C, 1.65 to 1.85 percent of Cr, 0.45 to 0.65 percent of Ni, 0.15 to 0.25 percent of Mo, 0.90 to 1.20 percent of Mn, 0.40 to 0.55 percent of Si, 0.0025 to 0.0045 percent of B, 0.22 to 0.28 percent of N, 0.007 to 0.012 percent of Ca, 0.002 to 0.005 percent of Mg, 0.03 to 0.06 percent of Nb, 0.04 to 0.08 percent of Ti, 0.02 to 0.06 percent of RE, less than or equal to 0.015 percent of S, less than or equal to 0.025 percent of P, less than or equal to 0.0008 percent of Al and the balance of Fe. The invention has the advantages that: the improved 40CrNiMo steel has low nickel content, so that cost can be reduced; the steel has a fine structure, the number of impurities is obviously reduced, and the impurities have a small size and are uniformly distributed, so that the performance of the steel is obviously improved; and a few process steps are performed in the preparation method, so that energy is saved, and the requirement of industrial scale-up production is met.