The water shortage is severe in the Yellow River basin, and in-depth analysis of the evolution of river runoff is of great guiding significance to the management of water resources in the basin. Based on the measured runoff of representative hydrological stations at different locations at the upper, middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, the historical evolution of monthly and annual run flow of the Yellow River basin during the period 1956-2016 were analyzed using the Mann-Kendall non-parameter trend test method. The results indicated that the annual and monthly streamflow has a statistically significant decreasing trend in the Yellow River during 1956-2016 at the 1% level, except for the source area. The decrease of stream flow became more obvious from the upper to the lower reach. Compared to the period in 1956-1979, the water flow into the sea decreased by 50.07% and 59.67% in 1980-2000 and 2001-2016, respectively. The evolution of runoff is characterized by three stages, with wet season in the 1950s and 1960s, and the streamflow decreased in 1970s to 1990s, but increased again after 2000. The monthly runoff of the Yellow River basin showed a decreasing trend overall, except for the source area. The proportion of monthly runoff in upstream and midstream areas increased in dry seasons and decreased in wet seasons. The proportion of monthly runoff in the downstream area increased in winter and summer and decreased in spring and autumn.