To provide a control method of a single-phase stepping motor which can surely and easily start the stepping motor, and can quickly accelerate it from the start to constant speed, and a control device.

The control method moves the single-phase stepping motor to a position in which hold torque becomes zero due to the forward excitation of the stepping motor from a state that the stepping motor is stopped in an optional position by being non-excited, and in this state, the control method brings the stepping motor into a non-excited state by cutting off excitation, thus completing the preparation of the start of the stepping motor by making detent torque act on it and moving it to a position in which the torque having a detent torque characteristic becomes zero. Next, the control method accelerates the stepping motor by alternately exciting it in the order of "reverse excitation forward excitation " so that the stepping motor has a prescribed rotating direction in terms of a torque characteristic, and accelerates the stepping motor to a prescribed high speed (constant speed).