The invention relates to a technical field of graphic image processing, especially to a technology for simplifying a complex path. The invention provides a method and a device for simplifying a complex path, to accomplish simplification of any complex path into a simple path of a region described by the complex path. The method for simplifying a complex path comprises: parsing the complex path into a vector linked-list consisted of linked monotonic vectors; dividing each vector in the vector linked-list into vector segments according to intersection points of the vector with other vectors in the vector linked-list; and extracting from all vector segments the vector segments located on a boundary of a region defined by the complex path, and connecting the extracted vector segments according to their location to obtain a simple path. According the method of the present application, a complex path can be simplified to a simplest path defining a region by utilizing node scanning process, such that operations on a vector level for a complex path can be realized.