This paper describes catalytic hydrogenation liquefaction of rice straw over metal (Ni, Co, and Cu)-modified CeO2 catalysts for bio-oil production. The results show that the highest rice straw conversion (89.08%) and bio-oil yield (66.7%) were obtained over Ni/CeO2 catalyst. The bio-oil contains mainly phenols, high-value-added, and widely used chemicals. Furthermore, metal-modified CeO2 catalysts can significantly influence the components of bio-oil with the highest percentage of C7-C10 compounds. This work thus demonstrates that metal/CeO2 catalysts can be effective in improving the bio-oil yield and selectivity in hydro-liquefaction of rice straw into bio-oil.