The present invention relates to a method for producing acrylic acid through vapor-phase contact oxidation of acrolein, wherein a reactor tube is divided into at least two catalyst layers, and catalysts having a higher activity are charged in the reactor tube sequentially toward an outlet port side from a material source gas inlet port side for a reaction therein to give acrylic acid, and wherein a catalyst activity-controlling method is a method comprising: a step of mixing a molybdenum-containing compound, a vanadium-containing compound, a copper-containing compound and an antimony-containing compound with water, then drying and calcining a resulting mixture, in which a catalytically-active element composition is kept constant but material source compounds are made to vary in type to give composite metal oxides having a different activity.