Abstract: [Objectives] The independent cabling operation of AUV in complex submarine terrain should balance cabling quality and self-safety which means AUV should keep the stable height with seabed.[Methods] This paper designs an optimal obstacle avoidance design of AUV for cable laying based on model prediction control. Firstly, the method establishes the path following control model based on the model predictive control (MPC). Then it classifies the different obstacles into topographic bulges or depressions. And it establishes the simplified mathematical model of the obstacle. Secondly, this method designs multiple objective optimization functions for different topographic according to the feature points. So the AUV could choose the shortest path with the minimum change of laying height. [Results] The result shows that this method has the smallest changes in laying height and it also chooses the shortest path to avoid the obstacle.[Conclusions] It not only ensures the safety of AUV in complex submarine terrain, but also greatly improves the laying quality of submarine cables.