Good inter-generational mobility can narrow the income gap between urban and rural areas in China. The education and social capital of family members are important channels for inter-generational mobility of rural families in China. Based on the China Household Income Survey (CHIP) data in 2013,this paper explores the impact mechanism and regional differences on rural inter-generational mobility in China from the perspectives of education and social capital. The results show that the educational level of male offspring has a remarkable positive impact on inter-generational mobility,while that of female offspring has no significant effect. The educational level of the father plays a full mediating role in the inter-generational mobility of male offspring though it does not directly affect the rural households’ inter-generational mobility; The role of social capital in inter-generational mobility presents differences on the offspring’s gender. The fact that the male offspring seeks employment through social capital can promote the upward inter-generational mobility. However,this is not true for the female offspring. The further regional comparative study shows that there is no obvious inter-generational mobility in rural China. The rural households in the first-level and second-level regions show a slightly downward trend of inter-generational mobility yet those in the third-level region show the opposite. So it is proposed to improve the quality of rural education,enhance the social network of rural families,strengthen rural civilization construction,broaden the channels for farmers to increase income,and provide more non-agricultural job information for farmers.