The Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA) of Chongqing is located in the throat area of the ecological barrier in the Yangtze River Basin, which is one of the key areas for biodiversity conservation in China. The ecological environment of the TGRA is directly related to the safety of the Three Gorges Project, stability of millions of immigrants, ecological security of the Yangtze River Basin, and sustainable development of the region's social economy. The study on the characteristics of the spatiotemporal evolution of land ecological status in the TGRA of Chongqing has certain reference value for further strengthening the regional land ecological environment protection, which is of great significance for the understanding and solution of the current national ecological security strategy issues that are highly concerned. The aim of the present study was to develop an index system for assessing the land ecological status of the TGRA of Chongqing using the "basic-structure-benefit-stress" framework, to use a theoretical model of variation to fit and analyze the comprehensive index of land ecological status in 2000, 2009, and 2014, and to use spatial autocorrelation to perform hot and cold spot analysis and transfer matrix analysis of the spatiotemporal evolution of land ecological status in the study area from 2000 to 2014. (1) The quality of the land ecological status in the study area shows the distribution characteristics of the inner section of the TGRA > the middle sections of the TGRA > the end sections of the TGRA, and the process of rapid deterioration-slow reversal was exhibited in the TGRA of Chongqing from 2000 to 2014.(2) The C₀/(C₀+C) ratio initially decreased but then increased from 2000 to 2014, thereby indicating medium spatial autocorrelation and that spatial heterogeneity caused by structural factors played a major role in the spatial differentiation of land ecological status. However, the impact of random factors on the spatial heterogeneity of land ecological status cannot be neglected, which is consistent with rapid economic development, intensified use of land resources, and frequent occurrence of regional natural disasters during the past 14 years. (3) The evaluation of Moran's I values indicated that the land ecological status of Chongqing's TGRA during 2000-2014 has been in a high state of agglomeration, which increased during 2000-2009 and decreased during 2009-2014. (4) The areas of both the hot and cold spots generally increased from 2000 to 2014 but differed in spatial differentiation. The hot spots in the end section of the TGRA continuously increased, whereas the hot spots in the inner section of the TGRA continuously decreased. The hot spots were mainly concentrated in the main urban area in the end section of the TGRA and central urban area in the Wanzhou District, the inner section of the TGRA. The cold spots were mainly distributed in the inner sections of the TGRA in Wushan County, Wuxi County, Fengjie County, and the Kaizhou District and in the middle section of the TGRA in Shizhu County, Fengdu County, and the Wulong District, where the extent of land use is relatively low and vegetation coverage is relatively high. To some extent, the cluster characteristics of the hot and cold spots in the land ecological quality status reflect the differentiated land resource utilization policies and different regional development strategies of the TGRA of Chongqing.