Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common diseases worldwide, and is a significant risk factor for healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). Our aim in this study was to compare the distributions of HAIs and the causative pathogens between diabetic and non-diabetic patients. In this study, 716 HAIs in 465 diabetic patients and 761 HAIs in 465 non-diabetic patients were evaluated. HAIs in patients with DM were most frequently urinary tract infections (UTIs) [266 infections (37.2 %)], followed by blood stream infections (BSIs) [161 infections (22.5 %)], surgical site infections (SSIs) [127 infections (17.7 %)], pneumonia [107 infections (14.9 %)] and any other infections [161 infections (22.5 %)]. The rates of UTIs, BSIs, SSIs, pneumonia and any other infections were similar between diabetic and non-diabetic patients. In terms of the causative pathogens, Staphylococcus aureus more frequently caused SSIs and Candida spp more frequently caused UTIs in diabetic patients compared with non-diabetic patients. We found no differences in the distribution of HAIs between patients without and with DM. However, S. aureus and Candida spp were more common causative pathogens of SSIs and URTIs, respectively, in diabetic patients than in non-diabetic patients.