Taraxacum grypodon Dahlst. is an important medicinal and edible perennial herb. To study the effects of light intensity on the growth and secondary metabolites of T. grypodon can lay a foundation for revealing the formation mechanism of its secondary metabolites, and provide crucial reference for its subsequent comprehensive development and utilization, and also provide guidance for establishing high-quality and high-yield dandelion artificial cultivation system. In this study, four shading gradients (the light transmittance was 100%, 80%, 50%, 30%, respectively) were set up in the greenhouse to cultivate T. grypodon. At the time of harvesting, the growth related indicators were measured, and the sugar, flavonoids, total phenols, and lignin components in the aboveground leaves and underground roots were analyzed. 100% light transmittance was conducive to the growth and photosynthetic efficiency of T. grypodon. Under this light condition, leaf length, root length, aboveground and underground biomass were the highest (P<0.05), and the SPAD value of leaves was the largest. The total sugar and polysaccharide contents of leaves and roots were the highest when the light transmittance was 100%, and the total sugar content in roots was significantly higher than that in leaves (P<0.05), and the polysaccharide content in roots was significantly higher than that in leaves. The content of reducing sugar in leaves and roots both was the highest when the light transmittance was 50%. The content of reducing sugar in leaves and roots both had significant difference under different shading treatment. The flavonoids content in the leaves was significantly higher than that in the roots (P<0.05), and reached to the highest content in 100% light transmittance. The total phenolic content in leaves was significantly higher than that in roots (P<0.05), and reached to the highest at 100% light transmittance, but decreased significantly after shading. The lignin content in roots was significantly higher than that in leaves (P<0.05), and both reduced under shading. In conclusion, the flavonoids and phenols of T. grypodon are mainly accumulated in leaves, while total sugars and polysaccharides were mainly accumulated in roots. Sufficient light is more conducive to the accumulation of the metabolites and plant growth. Proper shading is beneficial to the accumulation of reducing sugar, reduces the content of total phenol and lignin, and increases the taste quality of T. grypodon. In production, both medicinal and edible quanlity should be taken into account, so the cultivation conditions of T. grypodon are suitable for no shaded or slightly shaded habitats.