The dietary inflammatory index (DII) has been reported to be related to chronic diseases as a novel inflammatory marker. However, the correlation between DII score and hyperuricemia in adults in the United States is still unclear. Therefore, our goal was to explore the correlation between them. A total of 19,004 adults were enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2011 to 2018. DII score was calculated according to 28 dietary items obtained by 24-hour dietary interview data. Hyperuricemia was defined by serum uric acid level. We used multilevel logistic regression models and subgroup analysis to determine whether the 2 were associated. DII scores were positively associated with serum uric acid and the risk of hyperuricemia. Per unit increased in DII score was associated with a 3 mmol/L increase in serum uric acid in males (β 3.00, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.05–3.94) and 0.92mmol/L in females (β 0.92, 95% CI 0.07–1.77), respectively. Compared with the lowest tertile of DII score, the rise of DII grade increased the risk of hyperuricemia among the whole participants (T2: odds ratio (OR) 1.14, 95% CI 1.03, 1.27;T3: OR 1.20 [1.07, 1.34],Pfor trend = .0012) and males [T2: 1.15 (0.99, 1.33),T3: 1.29 (1.11, 1.50),Pfor trend = .0008]. For females, the correlation between DII score and hyperuricemia was statistically significant in the subgroup stratified by body mass index (BMI) (BMI < 30, OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.02–1.14,Pfor interaction = .0134), which indicates that the association depends on BMI. In the United States male population, the DII score has a positive correlation with hyperuricemia. Anti-inflammatory dietary intake can be beneficial for lower serum uric acid.