To investigate the association between diabetic retinopathy (DR), DR intensity, and estimated glucose disposal rate (eGDR) in individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). This study comprised 1762 T2DM patients who were admitted between January and December, 2021. Overall, the DR was identified in 430 patients. Based on the eGDR, the participants were divided into four study groups. One-way analysis of variance was used to compare the groups. The correlations between eGDR and DR risk, eGDR, and DR severity were analyzed using regression analysis. Furthermore, these relationships were analyzed in different sex groups. Patients with T2DM had a 19.75% (348/1762) DR detection rate, whereas those with DR had a 22.41% (78/348) proliferative DR detection rate. The DR group had substantially reduced levels of eGDR compared with the non-DR group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that reduced eGDR was an independent risk factor for DR, after adjusting for confounding variables. eGDR correlated significantly with proliferative DR in women but not in men. In Chinese individuals with T2DM, lower eGDR was independently associated with a higher risk of DR.