Drying often leads to significant deterioration in the visual, structural and sensory attributes of rose flowers, thereby diminishing their ornamental and commercial value. The present study investigated the effects of various pre-drying chemical treatments and microwave drying durations on the postharvest quality of dried roses. A completely randomised factorial design was employed, comprising 12 treatment combinations, including a control. The pre-drying treatments included 0.5 % citric acid, a 1:3 glycerol-water solution and 10 % magnesium chloride, which were combined with three microwave drying durations of 2.5, 3.5 and 4.5 min. Correlation analysis indicated that moisture loss exhibited a strong negative relationship with dry weight (r = -0.952) and shrinkage ratio (r = -0.940), suggesting that higher water loss significantly reduced structural retention. Conversely, parameters such as texture, colour and shape showed strong positive correlations with each other (r > 0.98), emphasising their coordinated maintenance during drying. Brittleness, however, appeared relatively independent of these quality attributes. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed two major components: PC1, accounting for 83.33 % of the total variance, primarily capturing sensory and structural characteristics, while PC2, explaining 11.21 %, was associated with flower brittleness. Among the treatment combinations, P2D1 and P2D2, which involved glycerol-water pretreatment followed by microwave drying for 2.5 and 3.5 min, respectively, were most effective in preserving flower quality. These results indicate that glycerol pretreatment, when combined with moderate microwave drying durations, is superior in maintaining the visual, structural and sensory attributes of dried roses, providing a practical approach for enhancing their postharvest performance and commercial value.