The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of particle size of sunflower head residues and extraction conditions on yield and chemical quality of sunflower pectin. Pectin was extracted with sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP) and nitric acid solution. The highest yield was obtained for 60 mesh particle size, however larger sizes (about 2mm) can be used in industry for reason to facilitate the filtration process. The factors of pH and time of SHMP extraction affected the yield of pectin however strong statistical interactions among all of the three factors (pH, temperature and time) existed only for the firmness of jellies prepared at pH 2.4. Each of the factors of acid extraction of sunflower pectin (pH, temperature, time) had a strong effect on the yield, molecular mass and firmness of gels. There were no differences in moisture, ash and galacturonic acid content between SHMP-and ancid-soluble pectin. The acid-soluble pectin had a higher degree of methylation (43.7%) than SHMP-soluble pectin (35.3%). The acid soluble-pectin, despite its higher yield (15.3%), compared to that of SHMP--soluble pectin (9%), had relatively poor gelling quality.