To explore the supporting role of groundwater resources in the process of economic and social development of cities in Xinjiang, an index system covering three aspects of groundwater dependency, comprehensive water efficiency and groundwater exploitation potential was constructed, and the SMI-P method was used to quantitatively evaluate and analyze the supporting role of groundwater resources in the economy and society of Xinjiang from 2004 to 2016. The results show that, with the development of economy and the increase of population and cultivated land, the supporting role of groundwater resources to the economy and society in some cities of Xinjiang has been significantly enhanced, such as Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture, Bayingol Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, Tarbagatay Prefecture, etc. The supporting role of groundwater resources in the economic and social development of each city is quite different, and the supporting role of groundwater resources in the eastern and northern Xinjiang is stronger than that in the southern Xinjiang; Most of eastern Xinjiang and northern Xinjiang have relatively developed economies, and their dependence on groundwater and comprehensive water utilization efficiency are both at a high level, with less potential for groundwater exploitation and insufficient development space. Southern Xinjiang has a great potential for groundwater exploitation, which can provide further support for its economic and social development in the future.