The technology of gob-side entry retaining determines the mining efficiency and economic benefits of coal mines, and a reasonable method of gob-side entry retaining should be selected based on engineering geological conditions. Taking the 4303 working face of Shaqu Coal Mine as the engineering background, a comparative study was conducted on three types of gob-side entry retaining techniques: gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling, gob-side entry retaining with cutting roof and gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling exterior of roof cutting. Firstly, the displacement variational method in elastic mechanics was used to compare and analyze the roof subsidence of three different gob-side entry retaining methods. Secondly, FLAC3D numerical simulation software was used to establish calculation models for different gob-side entry retaining methods, and the lateral support stress of solid coal slope and surrounding rock deformation laws under three entry retaining methods were analyzed. The results indicate that: ①for lateral support stress: the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling exterior of roof cutting< the gob-side entry retaining with cutting roof <the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling; ②Compared with the subsidence of the roof of gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling, the gob-side entry retaining with cutting roof decreased by 14.3%, and the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling exterior of roof cutting decreased by 23.8%; ③Compared with the bottom heave of the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling, the gob-side entry retaining with cutting roof decreased by 16%, and the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling exterior of roof cutting decreased by 12%; ④For the cost of entry retaining: the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling is similar to the gob-side entry retaining with cutting roof, and the cost of the gob-side entry retaining with solid backfilling exterior of roof cutting is the highest. Finally, based on the above research, the application of the gob-side entry retaining with cutting roof in the 4303 working face of Shaqu Coal Mine has achieved good application effect.