The invention relates to a polyethylene-polystyrene foam, which is formed in a way that polystyrene is grafted on a molecular chain of polyethylene to connect the polyethylene with the polystyrene by a covalent chemical bond, wherein the grafting ratio mass percent of the grafted polystyrene is 25-60%, and the volume density of the polyethylene-polystyrene foam is 27-208kg/m<3>. The preparation method comprises the following steps: carrying out pre-irradiation treatment on the polyethylene; and adding the polyethylene after the pre-irradiation treatment, dispersant, functional monomer, emulsifying agent, nucleating agent and homopolymerization depressor to a reaction vessel to be subject to suspension graft polymerization reaction, adding foaming agent, cooling the reaction product, filtering, washing with water, drying, and heating to obtain the polyethylene-polystyrene foam. The polyethylene-polystyrene foam has the advantages of excellent mechanical property, favorable rebound elasticity, good stress cracking resistance, high impact absorbing capacity and the like, combines the flexibility of polyethylene foam and the rigidity of polystyrene foam, and is used in the fields of vehicles, buildings, packaging, heat preservation, heat insulation and the like.