An acid functionalized porous organic hyper-cross-linked polymer (HCP) derived from benzene monomer was prepared for catalytic dehydration of carbohydrates into 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF) in a DMSO solvent. Systematic characterizations of the HCP catalysts including essential structural properties, sulfur content and acid amount, were identified by XRD, XPS, FESEM, Raman, NH3-TPD, TGA, nitrogen physisorption and elemental analysis. Optimization of reaction parameters such as acid amount, solvent, substrate type, temperature and catalyst dosage, and comparison with reported solid acids were systematically investigated. The results showed that sulfonated HCP materials were highly active in fructose dehydration, which could afford a highest HMF yield of 96.7% at almost 100% fructose conversion in 30 min. Furthermore, the catalyst presented satisfied performance and stability during recycling tests. More importantly, the sulfonated HCP catalysts also exhibited promising activity in hydrolytic reaction, esterification and transesterification for platform chemicals production in biomass transformation.