Background/aims Clinical characteristics of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with anemia have not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the frequency of, risk factors for, and management of anemia in IBD patients and to evaluate the quality of life (QOL) in IBD patients with anemia. Methods We included two patient cohorts. In cohort 1, clinical data from 697 IBD patients were retrospectively collected. In cohort 2, the Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36) and Fatigue Scale-14 (FS-14) questionnaires for IBD patients were completed to evaluate the QOL. Results Anemia was present in 35.6% of IBD patients [38.2% of Crohn’s disease (CD) patients vs. 29.3% of ulcerative colitis (UC) patients, P = 0.025]. Elevated platelet (PLT) count (CD: OR, 1.004; 95% CI, 1.001–1.007; P = 0.007; UC: OR, 1.010; 95% CI, 1.004–1.016; P = 0.001), elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (CD: OR, 1.024; 95% CI, 1.012–1.036; P < 0.001; UC: OR, 1.025; 95% CI, 1.001–1.051; P = 0.044), and lower albumin levels (CD: OR, 0.801; 95% CI, 0.749–0.857; P < 0.001; UC: OR, 0.789; 95% CI, 0.720–0.864; P < 0.001) were associated with anemia. Among the IBD patients with anemia, only 25.8% received treatment for anemia. IBD patients with anemia had significantly lower SF-36 scores (P = 0.011) and higher FS-14 scores (P = 0.026) than those without anemia. Conclusion Anemia is common in IBD patients. Elevated PLT count and ESR are risk factors for anemia in IBD patients. Anemia may negatively impact IBD patients’ QOL, but few anemia patients receive treatment for anemia.