There is provided a method for avoiding the collision of an autonomous vehicle, the method including: setting collision detection areas including first and second collision detection areas based on a state of a first vehicle and a collision detection target at a location adjacent to the first vehicle; and determining the possibility of a collision between the first vehicle and the collision detection target using the collision detection areas of the first vehicle and the collision detection target; wherein setting the collision detection areas includes maintaining an attribute of the first collision detection area and changing an attribute of the second collision detection area in response to a change in the state of the first vehicle and the collision detection target.