Abstract: The preparation of foamed ceramics from tailings is one of the high value utilization ways. Unfortunately, the influences of sintering parameters and raw composition on the compressive strength of tantalum-niobium tailings-based foamed ceramics are still obscure. In this paper, tantalum-niobium tailings-based foamed ceramics were prepared by direct foaming method with tantalum-niobium tailings as the main raw material, kaolin(28%) and albite(12%) as auxiliary materials, and silicon carbide (SiC) as the foaming agent. The influence of sintering temperature, holding time, SiC content and tailings addition amount on the compressive strength of the foamed ceramics were investigated. The results showed that with increasing holding time and sintering temperature, the compressive strength of foamed ceramics decreases. Furthermore, the compressive strength of tantalum-niobium tailings-based foamed ceramics with the increase of SiC content, first decreased and then increased. Further analysis of the influencing mechanism indicated that the change of pore structure was the main factor leading to the change of compressive strength.The compressive strength and porosity of the foamed ceramic prepared under the conditions of sintering temperature of 1150 ℃, holding time of 40 min, tailings addition amount of 65%, and SiC content of 0.5% are 9.94 MPa and 67.16% respectively.This paper provides a theoretical basis for the preparation of high-strength foamed ceramics from tantalum-niobium tailings.