A method for controlling compressed mode is disclosed in the disclosure, includes: a network side obtains multi-carrier frequency measurement capability of a User Equipment (UE); when the UE needs to switch among frequencies/systems, the network side determines and controls whether the UE starts a compressed mode or not according to the multi-carrier frequency measurement capability of the UE. A system for controlling compressed mode is accordingly disclosed in the disclosure. By applying the disclosure, measurement can be implemented without starting the compressed mode when the UE needs to switch among frequencies/systems, thus enhancing the utilization rate of system sources and improving system performance.