The invention discloses a differential magnetic suspension vibration isolator which comprises an upper annular E-shaped electromagnet (15), a lower annular E-shaped electromagnet (11), an upper coil winding (8), a lower coil winding (10), a displacement sensor (1), a connecting flange plate (3), an adjusting nut (4), a spring (6), a linear bearing (7) and an armature (9). The upper annular E-shaped electromagnet (15) and the lower annular E-shaped electromagnet (11) are fixed onto a shell (14) and a base (12) respectively, the upper coil winding (8) and the lower coil winding (10) are fixed onto the upper annular E-shaped electromagnet (15) and the lower annular E-shaped electromagnet (11) respectively, the displacement sensor (1) is fixed onto the shell (14) through a support (16), the connecting flange plate (3), the adjusting nut (4), the spring (6), the linear bearing (7) and the armature (9) are sequentially connected in series from top to bottom through connecting rods (5), the shell (14) is fixed onto the base (12), and a sleeve (13) is fixed into the shell and matched with a spiral groove in the inner wall of the shell to form a sealed cooling water channel. The differential magnetic suspension vibration isolator has the advantages of simple structure, small size, non-contact, long service life, rapid response and easiness in regulating electromagnetic force, and has an excellent application prospect in the field of active vibration noise control.