Purpose Cystic lesions are a common complication in osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH). This study will discuss the cause of cystic lesion formation and the feature of cystic lesion distribution in ONFH. According to the feature of cystic lesion in ONFH, we will discuss the possible mechanisms of cystic lesions and their influence on collapse of the femoral head. Materials and methods We retrospectively gathered 102 ONFH patients (168 hips) from November in 2015 to August in 2016 on China-Japan Friendship Hospital. Three categories of patients' medical information were collected: demographic characteristics, bone cystic lesion location, and pathological finding on CT and MRI imaging (microfracture, collapse, crescent sign). On mid-coronal and mid-axial CT section, the femoral head was divided into four quadrants for locating the cystic lesion. And we classified the location relationship of cystic lesion and sclerosis rim as GI type, G2 type, and G3 type on coronal CT section. Results A significant difference was found between ONFH group with cystic lesion and ONFH group without cystic lesion in terms of microfracture (P < 0.001), collapse (P < 0.001), and crescent sign (P < 0.001). Forty-four cystic lesions (70%) are located in anterior hip area and 19 cystic lesions (30%) are located in posterior hip area. There were 14, 24, and seven cystic lesions (31, 53, 16%) locating in lateral, central, and medial pillars of the femoral head. G2 type was the most common pattern of location relationship between cystic lesion and sclerosis rim. Conclusion Cystic lesions are often found near sclerosis rim in ONFH. The femoral head with osteonecrosis complicating by cystic lesions is more likely to accompany microfracture, collapse, and crescent sign which indicate structural instability in the femoral head. Cystic lesion in ONFH plays an important role in aggravating the progression of femoral head collapse. The peak stress from sclerosis rim may be a main factor inducing the formation of cystic lesion in ONFH via an OA-like mechanism.