An apparatus for detecting a scene change in a compressed moving-picture detects the scene change even if frame structure images and field structure images exist together. The apparatus includes an image structure judging portion for judging the image structure of an inputted compressed moving-picture, a feature quantity extracting portion for extracting a feature quantity based on top and bottom double data in vertical direction of the image with respect to a field structure image when the judgment result of the image structure judging portion is a frame structure image, a data memory for storing the data extracted by the feature quantity extracting portion, an extracted data comparing portion for comparing the extracted data and calculating the quantity of variation of a picture, and a scene change judging portion for judging a scene change by the use of the quantity of variation calculated by the extracted data comparing portion.