The invention provides a method for preparing ethanediol from polyhydroxy compounds comprising starch, hemicellulose, cane sugar, glucose, fructose and fructosan. The method comprises the following steps of: taking the polyhydroxy compounds as reaction raw materials, and taking metals, carbides, nitrides, and phosphides of transition metals in families VIII, IX and X, such as ferrum, cobalt, nickel, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, iridium, platinum, molybdenum and tungsten as catalytic active components to form a polymetallic catalyst; and performing further catalytic conversion under a hydrothermal condition that the temperature is 120 to 300 DEG C and the hydrogen pressure is 1 to 13 MPa to prepare the ethanediol from the polyhydroxy compounds with high efficiency, high selectivity and high yield. The method for preparing the ethanediol from the polyhydroxy compounds has the outstanding advantages of renewable raw materials, environment-friendly reaction process, and atom economical efficiency. Simultaneously, compared with other techniques taking biomasses as the raw materials, the method has the advantages of simple process and high yield.