Salicylic acid (SA) was an essential component of the plant resistance to pathogens and also plays an important role in mediating plant response to some abiotic stress. The possible effects of SA on the growth and H2O2-metabolizing enzymes in rice seedlings under lead stress were studied. When rice seedlings grown in nutrient solution containing Pb2+ (0, 0.05, 0.15, 0.25 mmol/L) for 18 d, the plant biomass as well as the chlorophyll content of leaves decreased with increased Pb concentration. The pretreatment with SA (treated with 0.1 mmol/L SA for 48 h before Pb stress) partially protected seedlings from Pb toxicity. The chlorophyll contents in leaves were significant higher in leaves of Pb-exposed with SA pre-treatment seedlings than in Pb-exposed plants at the same Pb intensity. SA pre-treated alone could significantly increase the length of shoot and root of seedlings but the vigour difference was not marked under long-term exposure to Pb toxicity. SA pre-treated influence the H2O2 level in leaves of seedlings by up-regulating the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and repressing the activity of catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) depending on the concentrations of Pb2+ in the growth medium. The results supported the conclusion that SA played a positive role in rice seedlings against Pb toxicity.