The efficiency of resource-based is an important basis for measuring the sustainable level of resource-based cities.This paper employing DEA model and Malmquist productivity index to probe into the urban efficiency of resources-based cities in Hunan province and its changes from 2002 to 2009.The study found that the overall efficiency level of resources-based cities and the number of optimal efficiency cities are decreasing.From the perspective of classification characteristics, the overall efficiency of coal city shown an increasing trend, but non-ferrous metallurgy class city,ferrous metallurgy class city and non-metallic kind of city have shown a decreasing trend.The analysis of urban efficiency changes shown that the change of urban comprehensive efficiency have shown a downward trend.In contrary ,the index of the technological change and productivity change in cities have shown significant improvement trend.In terms of the classification of urban efficiency changes,for various types of urban ,the average change in value of overall efficiency and the productivity index are less than 1, shown a downward trend.But due to technical advances,in contrary,the productivity of coal town have a 58.2% increased.