Objective To explore the effect of pricking and cupping combined with acupuncture and moxibustion on postherpetic neuralgia and its effect on sleep quality. Methods A total of 200 patients with postherpetic neuralgia admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Northwest Minzu University School of Medicine from January 2021 to June 2023 were randomly divided into control group and observation group, with 100 patients in each group. The control group was treated with acupuncture and moxibustion, and the observation group was treated with acupuncture and moxibustion combined with pricking and cupping. The clinical efficacy, PSQI score and wound healing were compared between the two groups. Results The total effective rate of the observation group was 99.00%, which was higher than 92.00% of the control group (P <0.05). After treatment, the scores of PSQI in the observation group were lower than those in the control group (P <0.05). The wound healing rate of the observation group was higher than that of the control group, and the wound healing time was shorter than that of the control group (P <0.05). Conclusion Pricking and cupping combined with acupuncture and moxibustion can improve the clinical efficacy of patients with postherpetic neuralgia, improve the sleep quality of patients, and promote wound healing.