A communication method and apparatus are provided. The method includes: A first entity obtains information about a plurality of candidate cells of a terminal device. After determining that the terminal device switches to a first candidate cell of a first candidate entity, the first entity sends first information based on the information about the plurality of candidate cells, where the first information indicates to release a second candidate cell. The first candidate cell is one of the plurality of candidate cells, and the second candidate cell is one of the plurality of candidate cells. The first entity may be a serving entity, a source entity, or a candidate entity.