BackgroundMuscle strength and depression have been identified as independent risk factors for mortality in the elderly population. This study aimed to quantify the association between handgrip strength (HGS) and depression in community-dwelling older adults.MethodsResearch data were obtained from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Depression was assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD) with a cut-off score of 20 or more. HGS was assessed with a dynamometer. Binary logistic regression and multiple linear regression models were used to test the association between HGS and depression.ResultsThe sample consisted of 7,036 CHARLS participants, with an average age of 68.9 ± 7.2. After adjusting for gender, age, marriage, body mass index, comorbidities, smoking, drinking, and sleep time, compared with participants in the lowest quartile of HGS, those in the second to the fourth quartile group had a 0.84- (95% CI 0.72 to 0.98), 0.70- (95% CI 0.58 to 0.84) and 0.46- (95% CI 0.35 to 0.61) fold risk of depression, respectively.ConclusionsThere were a negative association between HGS and depression in community-dwelling older adults. It is critical to assess muscle strength in community older adults through accessible and valid objective measures to enhance depression screening.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12877-023-04034-6.