[Aim]  This study aims to identify the optimal artificial diet for Hyphantria cunea mass rearing, providing a basis for artificial breeding and experimental population establishment for pest control research. [Methods]  An age-specific life table was used to test the effects of three candidate artificial diets on H. cunea development, fecundity, and population growth potential. The control group was reared on maple leaves. [Results]  There was a significant difference between the three artificial diets in the rearing effect of H. cunea. Of these, AD-Ⅲ was the most effective diet, with developmental duration (45.91±0.41) d, immature survival rate 95.6%±0.6%, body length (3.67±0.13) cm and body weight (0.175 1±0.015 4) g of older larvae, fresh pupa weight (0.151 1±0.012 4) g, body length [♂ (1.61±0.06) cm; ♀ (1.85±0.06) cm] and wingspan [♂ (2.95±0.16) cm; ♀ (3.60±0.19) cm] of adults, fecundity [265±46)/♀], and population development significantly higher than in the AD-I and AD-Ⅱ groups. [Conclusion]  AD-Ⅲ is the optimal artificial diet for mass-rearing of H. cunea.