The Modal Method is employed to simulate the coupling between the terahertz wave and onedimensional (1D) transmissive metal grating on the top of terahertz quantum well photodetectors (THzQWPs). Electrical field patterns and behaviors of 1D grating at different frequencies and device thicknesses are systematically studied. The results show that, the coupling efficiency is not only determined by the grating parameters, multiple reflections in the device and the subsequent multiple diffractions at the grating also play an important role. Different diffracted modes interact with each other, and near field effect caused by the evanescent waves are essential in evaluating the coupling efficiency especially when the frequencies are below the cutoff of the gratings. The optimization conditions of the performance of 1D metal grating coupled THzQWPs are also discussed.