To provide an optical element evaluation method capable of simply measuring (evaluating) the degree of difference of measuring wave surface data of a test lens from a design value without manufacturing a reference lens.

In this optical element evaluation method, a parallel light flux is allowed to enter the reference lens 14a by simulation, and the first numerical value group determined by totalizing a total distance value from a point image group encircling a point image to a center point image and a total distance value between each adjacent point image group, relative to each point image in the point image group by the emission light flux, is compared with the second numerical value group determined by totalizing the total distance value from the point image group encircling the point image to the center point image and the total distance value between each adjacent point image group, by using a porous plate 5A for allowing a parallel light flux which is the same as the parallel light flux to enter the test lens 8 and a CCD camera 9 for imaging the light flux to acquire it as a point image group, and the result is visualized and expressed, to thereby evaluate the test lens 8.