Abstract: Hydraulic characteristics of multi-level intakes of hydropower stations are studied numerically in this work using a 3D turbulent model, with three study cases of the Nuozhadu, Jinping-I and Guangzhao hydropower stations, focusing on analysis and comparison of head loss, velocity distribution, and flow pattern. The numerical results have been verified against physical model tests. This study shows that for multi-level intakes, the differences in hydraulic characteristics primarily depend on the size of their stoplog piers and the width of their intake chambers. The results would provide useful information for design of multi-level intakes.