The relationship between abrasive concentration, length of oscillating chamber, standoff distance and cutting depth, erosion rate as well as cutting specific energy was investigated by experiments in the submerge and surface conditions. The cutting and erosion capabilities of the pre-mixed abrasive water jet and the pulsed abrasive water jet were analyzed in contrast. It is shown that the maximum cutting depth and erosion rate of the pulsed abrasive water jet are respectively 1.67,1.72 and 1.39, 1.47 than the pre-mixed abrasive water jet in submerge and surface conditions. These results attained from the research are useful to increase the cutting efficiency, decrease the energy ratio and expand the application domains of the abrasive water jet.