PURPOSE: To enhance color forming properties and reduce a wear of a thermal head by a method wherein a specific polyvinyl alcohol resin or the like is used as a main component of a binder to be added to a thermally color-forming component layer or an overcoating agent to be applied to the thermally color- forming component layer.

CONSTITUTION: In a thermal recording sheet, a thermally color-forming component layer is provided on a top surface of a substrate. In this invention, a main component of a binder to be added to the thermally color-forming component layer or an overcoating agent to be applied to the thermally color-forming component layer is a polyvinyl alcohol resin containing 1000ppm or less sodium. Alternatively, as the main component, an anion group-modified polyvinyl alcohol resin containing anion group in a molecule and metal ion of two or more valences by 0.5 or more equivalent weight per one equivalent weight of anion group may be used. In this manner, a thermal recording sheet having superior color forming properties and little possibility of wearing a thermal head is obtained.