In this paper, the effects of different incident angles of laser on paint removal depth, surface morphology, and roughness are studied. By changing the angle between the laser beam and the sample, the laser paint removal test at different angles is completed, and the 2024 aluminum alloy is used as the research object to detect and analyze the surface paint removal effect. Under the same conditions, the paint removal depth increases first and then decreases with the decrease of the laser incident angle. When the laser incident angle is 70°, the maximum paint removal depth is reached. When the laser energy density is 5 J/cm², the paint removal depth at the inflection point increases by 160.57 μm compared to 40°, and this difference increases as the paint thickness increases. In addition, the incident angle of the laser will alter the surface roughness of the sample. Similarly, the minimum surface roughness is obtained at 70°, which is increased by 0.438‒0.812 μm when compared to the initial surface roughness. The laser incident angle can also reduce the length of the smoke plume in the laser transmission direction and the concentration of plume particles. When the laser energy density is 0.5‒2 J/cm², the paint removal mechanism is the main ablation effect, but when it exceeds 2 J/cm², it becomes a combined effect of ablation and thermal expansion.