PurposeDepression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may be linked to the metabolic syndrome (MetS). Consistency of this association across ethnic groups and the influence of comorbidity of depression/PTSD were examined.MethodsCross-sectional baseline data from the HELIUS study were used (4527 Dutch, 2999 South-Asian Surinamese, 4058 African Surinamese, 2251 Ghanaian, 3522 Turkish and 3825 Moroccan participants). The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) (score range 0–27) measured depressive symptoms. A 9-item questionnaire (score range 0–9) measured PTSD symptoms. The MetS was defined according to the International Diabetes Federation. The association of a depressed mood (PHQ-9 sum score ≥ 10) and severe PTSD symptoms (sum score ≥ 7) with the MetS was examined using logistic regression. Interaction with ethnicity and between a depressed mood and severe PTSD symptoms was tested.ResultsA depressed mood was associated with the MetS [OR (95% CI) = 1.37 (1.24–1.51)] in the total sample and consistent across ethnic groups (p values for interaction all > 0.05). Severe PTSD symptoms were significantly associated with the MetS in the Dutch [OR (95% CI) = 1.71 (1.07–2.73)]. The South-Asian Surinamese, Turks and Moroccans showed weaker associations than the Dutch (p values for interaction all < 0.05). A depressed mood and severe PTSD symptoms did not interact in the association with the MetS (p values for interaction > 0.05).ConclusionsA depressed mood was consistently associated with the MetS across ethnic groups, but the association between severe PTSD symptoms and the MetS maybe ethnicity dependent. The association with the MetS was not different in case of depressed mood/severe PTSD symptoms comorbidity.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s00127-018-1533-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.