Objective To investigate the effect of extent of surgical resection on the survival and prognosis of patients with glioblastoma. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 48 patients with glioblastoma who were admitted to The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from July 2012 to July 2017 and had complete long-term follow-up data and preoperative and postoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. Preoperative and postoperative T1 enhancement images and Flair images were compared, and the association of the extent of surgical resection with survival and prognosis was analyzed. Results The patients with total resection on T1 enhancement images (an extent of resection of 100%) had a significantly longer median survival time than those without total resection (an extent of resection of <100%) (16.2 months vs 8.6 months, P<0.01). Among the patients with total resection on T1 enhancement images, the patients with a resection rate of ≥ 35% on Flair images had a significantly longer median survival time than those with a resection rate of <35% (19.7 months vs 12.4 months,P<0.05). Conclusions Total resection on T1 enhancement images and ≥ 35% resection on Flair images can significantly prolong the survival time of patients with glioblastoma, which has an important guiding significance for the development of surgical strategies for glioblastoma.