Abstract: The damage evolution mechanism and its key influencing factors of high-carbon pearlite steel wire during multi-pass drawing process were investigated. By combining the GTN (Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman) damage model with finite element numerical simulation, the damage distribution inside the steel wire was systematically analyzed. The parameters of the GTN model were calibrated through an inverse method combining uniaxial tensile test and finite element simulation. The effects of key process parameters, including half cone angle, sizing belt length, friction coefficient and drawing pass, on internal damage evolution were quantitatively analyzed. The results show that damage exhibits a distribution characteristic of “higher in the core and lower at the surface”, with the maximum void volume fraction concentrated in the axis region of the steel wire. Parameter analysis indicates that the half cone angle has the most significant effect on damage accumulation, with a contribution rate of 41.67%, followed by drawing pass (12.18%).