The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters and breeding values for growth traits in grass carp , an important economic freshwater fish in China. A factorial mating design was carried out to construct 21 full-sib families by artificial fertilization, and their parents were from a nucleus breeding population. Animal models and REML procedures were used to estimate genetic, phenotypic, and environmental parameters for body weight (BW), standard length (SL), body height (BH), and condition factor (. The results showed large variations for growth traits in the breeding population. Moreover, BW, SL, and BH traits displayed moderate to high levels of genetic variation (0.21 to 0.47) and relatively low heritability for condition factor (0.11). In addition, common environmental effects were relatively low for the four growth traits (0.07-0.17). Genetic and phenotypic correlations among BW, SL, and BH traits were all positive and ranged from 0.88 to 0.97. In contrast, the genetic correlations between =0.43). Overall, the results suggested that BW could be a single target trait for the genetic improvement of growth performance in grass carp. The individual breeding values were predicted using the best linear unbiased prediction (BLUP) method with the software ASREML. Selection was practiced on individual phenotype or breeding values for each trait. The results showed that, although Pearson's correlations between breeding values and phenotypic values for each trait were 0.77-0.93, the same selected individual rates for each trait ranged from 68.75% to 81.82%, and Spearman's correlation coefficients ranged from 0.19 to 0.81 at a 10% selection intensity. Both methods of selection presented significant differences, particularly for the trait with low heritability. This study provides a theoretical basis and technical support for selective breeding of growth traits in grass carp.