Abstract: Dryland regions cover 41% of the Earth’s land surface and support the livelihood of half of the world’s population. Soil microbes play an important role in carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling, therefore affecting soil health. Soil microbial biomass C (SMBC) and N (SMBN) are indicators of soil microbial activities. A better understanding of patterns and drivers of SMBC and SMBN in global dryland regions can provide important insights to enhance ecosystem functioning services. Here, we compiled 109 observations of SMBC (0-30 cm) and 79 observations of SMBN (0-30 cm) from 100 sites across global dryland regions with aridity index less than 0.65. The results showed that the average amount of SMBC and SMBN in dryland regions were 358.47 ± 25.45 mg kg-1 and 51.86 ± 4.59 mg kg-1. The amount of SMBC and SMBN did significantly vary among different dryland types and ecosystem types. Meanwhile, the ratio of SMBC to SMBN in global dryland regions was 8.73. Soil sand fraction and pH had significant negative effect on the ratio of SMBC to SMBN. Our research has initially explored the pattern and control factors of soil microbial biomass in dryland, and provided basic research data for dryland management in the future.