Objective To study the contact mechanics of metal-on-metal hip joint replacements under different walking conditions, particularly for the edge contact behavior between the cup and the head of the bearing due to large range movement. Methods The finite element model of a typical hip joint replacement with conformal spherical bearing was established to simulate the edge contact of hip joint replacement under the given cup inclination angles and vertical loads. Results The maximum contact pressure decreased slightly and the contact area increased when the cup inclination angles increased within the range of 0°~60°. When the cup inclination angles were more than 80°, the corresponding contact area moved to the cup edge, the maximum contact pressure and distribution range increased, but the position of the maximum contact pressure moved from the initial contact point to the new point with 6°~9° in the direction of the increasing cup inclination angle to balance the corresponding contact pressure distribution and the loaded human weight. Conclusions Different edge contact behavior of hip joint replacements tends to occur due to the bigger cup inclination angle. Therefore, much attention should be paid to the problem of edge contact for both the clinical surgery and the manufacturing of hip joint replacements.