Based on Landsat images in 1985, 2000 and 2017, the land cover results of Horqin sandy land from 1985 to 2017 are obtained by using support vector machine (SVM) classification method. First, we obtained land cover classification maps by using SVM classification method on Landsat images in 1985, 2000 and 2017. Then, the research area is divided into two parts: the main body of the sandy land and the hilly loess area, and the regional characteristics of the land cover change in the research area are further analyzed. The results show that from 1985 to 2000, the cultivated land area of Horqin sandy land increased significantly while the grassland area decreased probably because the household contract responsibility system was implemented during this period, which aroused the enthusiasm of herdsmen for production, and a large amount of cultivated land was reclaimed. From 2000 to 2017, the cultivated land area decreased and the grassland area increased, which is closely related to the vigorous implementation of ecological protection policies such as returning farmland to forest and grassland in this area since 2000.This change indicates that the ecological protection in the research area has achieved initial results. Further analysis shows that the cropland area in the main body of sandy land area continued to increase from 1985 to 2017, which is closely related to the development of irrigated agriculture and rice cultivation. This paper provides basic data and decision basis for improving and governing the ecological environment in Horqin area.