This study presents the design of novel hydrogel films, based on low-methoxyl (LM) pectin and NaA-or ZnA-zeolite particles, to serve as wound dressing materials with controlled drug delivery properties. We studied the effects of the preparation method of hydrogels, the amounts of crosslinker, drug and zeolite, and the type of cation in zeolites on the drug release mechanisms from the hydrogels. Ionic strengths of both film and external medium dictated the drug release behavior of the films, while the other parameters also played essential roles. NaAzeolite hydrogels prepared using membrane diffusion controlled system, could reach a drug release ratio of 86% within 5 h. The drug-free hydrogels displayed no cytotoxicity while supporting cell proliferation and migration. Our cost-effective LM pectin-zeolite hydrogels promise to be effective wound dressing materials with controlled drug delivery ability, transparency, good swelling properties, ability to hold fluids, good oxygen transmission rate, and biocompatibility.Pectin is a water soluble polysaccharide mostly extracted from citrus peels. It is a byproduct or waste product of fruit juice industry; therefore, it is easily available and cheap. It is mainly composed of linear chains of galacturonic acid residues. Pectin is referred to as low-methoxyl pectin (LM-pectin) in case the degree of esterification of the carboxylic acid groups is <50%. LM pectin forms three-dimensional (3D) network gels of Ca 2+ ion-bridged dimers to induce an "egg box shell" structure, 4 which makes it an Additional Supporting Information may be found in the online version of this article.