Based on climatic data from 52 meteorological stations in southern Xinjiang during 1961-2013, the fundamental spatial-temporal change characteristic of annual accumulated temperature of ≥10℃, frost-free period and mean temperature in July were analyzed by using the methods of linear regression, accumulative anomaly, T-test and mixed spatial interpolation technology based on ArcGIS. And the change of cotton-planting zoning was studied by combining with the cotton-planting climate division index. The main results are as the follows: heat resource was very obviously different in different regions of southern Xinjiang, generally, annual accumulated temperature of ≥10℃, frost-free period and mean temperature in July were higher or more in plain areas than in mountain areas. In the background of global warming, the three indicators showed an increasing trend at the rates of 56.63℃·d·10y~(-1), 3.15d·10y~(-1) and 0.15℃·10y~(-1) in recent 53 years, and they had mutation in 1997, 1997 and 1994, respectively. Under the joint effects of the above-mentioned climate factors, the areas of middle maturing cotton and early-middle maturing cotton expanded 17682km~2 and 43033km~2 respectively, early maturing cotton areas did not change significantly, but the areas of special early maturing cotton and unsuitable cotton planting areas decreased by 4940km~2 and 56589km~2 after 1997 than before in southern Xinjiang.