Enhancing livelihood resilience (LR) and disaster risk perception (DRP) to adjust disaster prevention and mitigation behavior (DPMB) has increasingly emerged as a vital strategy for urban and rural residents to cope with flood risks. Utilizing survey data from 856 urban and rural residents in flood risk areas of Sichuan, China, this study constructed a research path of "LR-* DRP-* DPMB" based on the sustainable livelihoods approach and protection motivation theory. Using Probit models and mediating effect models, the study empirically examines the influence of urban and rural residents' LR and DRP on their DPMB, as well as the mediating effect of DRP. Robustness test is used to prove the reliability of the results. The findings indicate that urban residents generally exhibit higher levels of LR compared to their rural counterparts; however, their DRP values and the proportion of residents engaging in DPMB are lower than those of rural residents. Furthermore, rural residents' LR and DRP have a positive and significant effect on their DPMB. Specifically, for each unit increase in LR and DRP among rural residents, the probability of engaging in DPMB rises by 61.27 % and 35.53 %, respectively. DRP is found to play a partial mediating role between LR and DPMB. Conversely, urban residents' LR and DRP showed no significant impact on their DPMB. This study provides valuable policy insights for disaster risk management strategies targeted at urban and rural residents.