<p>The present study was conducted with the objective of investigating the effect of aeration on the composting process and bacterial community in a semi-permeable membrane-covered high-temperature composting system. To this end, a 21-day laboratory-scale composting experiment was conducted on chicken manure, municipal sludge, wood chips, and rice straw under aeration rates of 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6&#xa0;L·kg DM^− 1 min^− 1. The results showed that aeration of 0.2&#xa0;L·kg DM^− 1 min^− 1 prolonged the high-temperature time span, increased the degradation rate of organic matter, and effectively improved the maturity of the compost. The results of the microbiological analyses demonstrated that the aeration of 0.2&#xa0;L·kg DM^− 1 min^− 1 resulted in an augmentation of both diversity and abundance in relation to the bacterial communities. Furthermore, aeration of 0.2&#xa0;L·kg DM^− 1 min^− 1 increased the relative abundance of Actinobacteriota and Proteobacteria in the cooling and maturation phases as well as <i>Bacillus</i> in the high temperature phase, thus promoting organic matter degradation and compost maturation. Different aeration levels affected the bacterial community structure, which in turn altered compost physicochemical properties and maturity.</p>