Abstract: Evaluation of the grinding impact on the bearing capacity of laminates with embossed wrinkle is essential for the manufacturing quality assessment and the determination of assembly strategies for composites. In this work, both experimental and numerical investigations were carried out to understand the impact of embossed wrinkle and its grinding treatment on the compressive failure behavior of laminates. In experimental study, digital imaging correlation (DIC) technology was applied to monitor the distribution of surficial strain and industrial digital camera with electron microscope was used to record the damage process. The bearing behavior and fracture mode of the laminates were analyzed. In numerical study, high-fidelity finite element models were created to predict the intra/inter-laminar failure by combining the Hashin failure criterion and cohesive element method. The features of stress distribution and failure mechanism of the laminates with embossed wrinkle and the one grinded were investigated, the influence of wrinkle height on compressive strength were also explored. The results show that the embossed wrinkle plays a significantly negative impact on the compressive loading capacity of laminates, and the loading capacity would be decreased further by the grinding operation, as well as the stiffness. The numerical prediction fits well with the test data. For the embossed wrinkle samples, the laminate buckles along the convex direction of wrinkled layers. Delamination occurs above the wrinkled area and extends to the loading ends. The fiber breakage extends from the trough of wave layer under the wrinkled area to the other layers. For the grinded samples, the laminate buckles opposite the wrinkle convex direction. First, the discontinuous layer arches and delamination occurs. Afterwards, the upside continuous layer at wrinkle area arches and breaks, the fiber damage spreads around. With the increase of wrinkle height, the compressive failure loads of wrinkled laminates and the grinding samples both significantly decrease. This work provides a reference for the assessment of the treatment scheme for composite structures with embossed wrinkle defects.