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<p><b>Background: </b>The <i>GRK4</i> and <i>EMILIN1</i> genes have been suggested to be involved in the development of hypertension. However, the results have been inconsistent. In this study, a meta-analysis was performed to clarify the associations of polymorphisms in the<i> GRK4</i> and <i>EMILIN1</i> genes with hypertension risk.</p><p><b>Methods: </b>Published literature from PubMed and Embase databases were retrieved. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using fixed- or random-effects model.</p><p><b>Results: </b>Five studies for polymorphisms in the <i>GRK4</i> gene and five studies for polymorphisms in the <i>EMILIN1</i> gene were identified. The results suggested that rs1801058 polymorphism in the <i>GRK4</i> gene was inversely associated with hypertension among East Asians (TT vs. CC: OR=0.39, 95%CI 0.28-0.55) and positively associated with hypertension among Europeans (TT vs. CC: OR= 2.38, 95%CI 1.38-4.10). Rs2960306 polymorphism in the <i>GRK4</i> gene was significantly associated with hypertension among Europeans (TT vs. GG: OR=1.92, 95%CI 1.13-3.27). The significant associations were also observed for rs2011616 and rs2304682 polymorphisms in the <i>EMILIN1</i> gene among Japanese (rs2011616: AA vs. GG: OR=0.38, 95%CI 0.18-0.82; rs2304682: GG vs. CC: OR=0.37, 95%CI 0.17-0.81) but not among Chinese.</p><p><b>Conclusions: </b>This meta-analysis suggested that rs1801058 polymorphism in the <i>GRK4 </i>gene was associated with hypertension in East Asians and Europeans. The significant association was also found for rs2960306 polymorphism in the <i>GRK4</i> gene among Europeans. In addition, there were significant associations of rs2011616 and rs2304682 polymorphisms in the <i>EMILIN1</i>gene with hypertension among Japanese.</p>