The study on the three-phase high-density aquaculture mode of whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) was carried out using a mature recirculating aquaculture system (RAS). The whole rearing period of shrimp was divided into three phases in this study. The first phase was nursery phase: 1.2 million postlarvae (PL 5) were reared in the culture water of 96.8 m3, with a breeding density of 12400 individuals/m3; the average weight of the shrimp was 0.28 g and the aquaculture yield reached 3.4 kg/m3 after a rearing period of 31 days. The second phase was the middle phase using RAS: shrimps were reared in culture water of 338 m3, with a stocking density of 3447 individuals/m3; the average weight of the shrimp was 3.89 g and the aquaculture yield reached 8.3 kg/m3 after a rearing period of 30 days. The third phase was the grow-out phase, in which shrimps with an average weight of 13.46 g were reared in 676 m3 of culture water ata density of 1062 individuals/m3and the yield reached an 13.3 kg/m3 after rearing 41 days. In RAS, the water quality indexes such as dissolved oxygen (DO), total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), nitrite nitrogen (NO2--N) and the total number of vibrio were all controlled within a good range, which guaranteed an increase in aquaculture production. In general, the three-phase recirculating aquaculture model of L. vannamei can make full use of the load of the RAS, improve using efficiency and reduce the operating costs of the system. This research provides a new model for the management of RAS for L. vannamei.