BACKGROUND This study aimed to investigate the effects of semidry milling on the quality attributes of highland barley flour and highland barley bread. Highland barley flours were prepared by dry (DBF), semidry (SBF), and wet (WBF) milling methods. The properties of different highland barley flours were analyzed, and highland barley breads made from different highland barley flours were evaluated. RESULTS The results showed that WBF had the lowest damaged starch content (15.2 g kg−1), and the contents of damaged starch in SBF‐35 and SBF‐40 (43.5 g kg−1 and 24.1 g kg−1 respectively) were lower than that of DBF (87.6 g kg−1). And SBF‐35 and SBF‐40 with large particles exhibited low hydration performance. In addition, SBF‐35 and SBF‐40 had higher pasting viscosity, pasting temperature, ΔH, and relative crystallinity, consequently resulting in better gel properties than other highland barley flours. These properties could help SBF‐35 and SBF‐40 develop high‐quality bread with large specific volume and superior crumb structure and texture that is similar to the bread with WBF. CONCLUSION Overall, semidry milling not only could improve the characteristics of HBF, but also avoid high starch damage by dry milling and water wasting by wet milling. What is more, highland barley breads with SBF‐35 and SBF‐40 had preferable appearance and crumb texture. Therefore, semidry milling could be regarded as a feasible way to produce highland barley flour. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.