Objective: To study the efficacy of intravitreal Ranibizumab and laser photocoagulation in the treatment of diabetic macular edema and to compare the two treatment arms. Design: prospective, randomized, interventional, hospital–based study. Material and methods: 40 eyes of 40 patients with diabetic macular edema (DME), attending the outpatient department of department of ophthalmology, SRMS–IMS, Bareilly, UP were enrolled in the study. Patients were randomized into two groups, A and B, baseline evaluation was done, including optical coherence tomography (OCT) and fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA). Intravitreal ranibizumab was given to the patients in group A while laser photocoagulation was administered in group B. Results: At 2 months follow up there was significant (p<0.05) improvement in the q best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT) in both the treatment groups.no serious adverse effects were seen. Conclusion: Both laser photocoagulation and intravitreal ranibizumab prove to be safe and effective method in management of DME.