We surveyed the spatial and seasonal variations and estimated the seaward export of DOM in the of Pearl River estuary (PRE), China. The concentration of DOM in this estuary decreases from land to sea but the change in its chemical character is marginal. The concentration and export of DOM are the lowest among the world's major rivers. Yet DOM delivered from the PRE is protein-rich and can be readily used by microbes, thereby exerting a potentially important impact on the local marine ecosystem.