Tumor‐induced osteomalacia (TIO) is a rare paraneoplastic syndrome. It is curable by excision of the causative tumor. However, a few cases may persist or relapse after tumor resection. We aimed to investigate the rate of these events and related factors. We retrospectively studied TIO patients treated with surgery in a tertiary hospital. TIO was established based on a pathologic examination or the reversion of hypophosphatemia. Refractory TIO patients consisted of those with nonremission or recurrent hypophosphatemia after surgery. A total of 230 patients were confirmed as having TIO. After primary surgery, 26 (11.3%) cases persisted, and 16 (7.0%) cases recurred. The overall refractory rate was 18.3%. The median time of recurrence was 33 months. Compared with patients in the recovery group, patients in the refractory group were more likely to be female (59.5% versus 41.0%, p = .029) and have a lower serum phosphate level (0.44 ± 0.13 versus 0.50 ± 0.11 mmol/L, p = .002). The refractory rate was lowest in head/neck tumors (7.5%) and highest in spine tumors (77.8%). Regarding the tissue involved of tumor location, the refractory rate was higher in tumors involving bone than tumors involving soft tissue (32.7% versus 7.0%, p <.001). The outcomes of malignant tumors were worse than those of benign tumors (p < .001):​ nonremission rate, 21.4% versus 9.7%;​ recurrence rate, 28.6% versus 6.5%. In the multivariate regression analysis, female sex, spine tumors, bone tissue‐involved tumors, malignancy, and low preoperation serum phosphorus levels were identified as risk factors for refractory outcomes. High preoperative fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) levels were also associated with refractory after adjusting for involving tissue and tumor malignancy. In summary, we are the first to report the rate and clinical characteristics of refractory TIO in a large cohort. For patients with multiple risk factors, especially spine tumors, clinical practitioners should be aware of a poor surgical prognosis.