Nonionic surfactants are widely used in reactive dyeing processes, and the interaction between surfactants and reactive dyes affect the hydrolytic property of reactive dyes. In this study, reactive brilliant blue KN-R (C.I. reactive blue 19) was employed as a model dye, and fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene ether (AEO-9) was selected as a model nonionic surfactant. The interaction was first investigated in aqueous solutions by a UV-spectrophotometry method, then the effect of surfactant concentration on the hydrolytic behavior of KN-R was studied using high performance liquid chromatography method. Below the critical micelle concentration, the surfactant served as dispersant; the hydrolysis of reactive dye was accelerated. However, when the concentration of surfactant was above its critical micelle concentration, the dye was solubilized into the micellar phase, which was revealed from the changes in absorbance intensity and wavelength of the maximum absorbance. This led to slowed hydrolysis of reactive dye. These findings are useful in understanding the effect of concentration of nonionic surfactant on the hydrolysis of vinyl sulfone reactive dyes.