In-phase control and energy-optimized control are the two major control strategies proposed for series power quality controllers (SPQC). However quantitative analysis and comparison between these two control strategies is quite limited in previous publications. In this paper, an extensive quantitative analysis is carried out on these two control strategies through phasor diagram approach, and a detailed quantitative comparison is conducted accordingly. The load current is used as the reference phasor, and this leads to a simpler and clearer phasor diagram for the quantitative relationship. Subsequently detailed analysis of SPQC using in-phase control and energy-optimized control are provided respectively, under different modes both for under voltage/voltage sag and for over voltage/voltage swell. The closed form analytic expressions and the curves describing SPQC compensation characteristics are obtained. The detailed system power flow is figured out for each mode, and the detailed quantitative comparison between the two control strategies is then carried out. The comparison covers several aspects of SPQC, such as required compensating voltage magnitude, required capacity of energy storage component, and maximal ride-through time. In the end, computer simulation and prototype experimental results are shown to verify the validity of all the analysis and the result of the comparison.