Analyzing the landscape pattern of rural settlements is an important way to reveal the relationships between landscape change and human activities. Based on Landsat TM/ETM/OLI satellite remote sensing images as data sources and Hejiang River Basin as the research area, this paper expounds the information on the spatial distribution of rural settlements at four time points in 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020. Using the methods of landscape pattern analysis, GIS spatial analysis and spatial statistics, this paper analyzes the spatial characteristics of the rural settlements, such as scale, distribution and shape, and then discusses the influences of terrain, rivers, location and policy factors on the spatial characteristics of the rural settlements. The results show that with the advance of time, the number of rural settlement patches in Hejiang River Basin is decreasing, the patch area and average patch area are increasing, the patch density is decreasing, and the settlement pattern tends toward cluster development. In addition, the shapes of settlement patches tend to be complicated and irregular, so it is necessary to strengthen planning and guidance in order to promote the regular layout of the settlements. The overall distribution of settlements is dense in the Northwest and Southeast, but sparse in the Middle and West, with a high density in the plains and a low density in hills and mountains. This study found that the terrain, river and location factors have significant influences on the spatial pattern of settlements.