To evaluate the clinical value of retrolaparoscopic partial nephrectomy in patients with small renal carcinoma. Methods The clinical data of 105 patients with small renal carcinoma admitted to our hospital from February 2018 to January 2021 were collected, and they were divided into control group (48 cases with open partial nephrectomy) and observation group (57 cases with retrolaparoscopic partial nephrectomy) according to different treatment methods. Operation indicators, length of hospital stay, renal function, creatinine level, quality of life, complications, positive margin and recurrence/metastasis rate 3 months after operation were compared between the two groups. Results There were no differences in operation time, intraoperative blood loss and drainage time between the two groups (P＞0.05), and the hospitalization time in observation group was shorter than that in control group (P＜0.05). 3 months after treatment, the eGFR level in the control group was lower than that in the observation group (P＜0.05), and there was no difference in the eGFR level before and after surgery in the observation group (P＞0.05). Creatinine level in both groups increased 3 months after treatment, but the observation group was lower than the control group (P＜0.05). After treatment, the scores of functional domains and overall health status in the observation group were higher than those in the control group, while the scores of symptom domains and individual items were lower than those in the control group (P＜0.05). After treatment, the total incidence of complications in the observation group was lower than that in the control group (P＜0.05), and no positive margin or metastasis occurred in the two groups (P＞0.05). Conclusion Retroperitoneal laparoscopic partial nephrectomy is feasible in the treatment of small renal carcinoma, and has a positive effect on improving patients' recovery and quality of life.