OBJECTIVE To establish a method to determine the contents of chlorogenic acid in Herba Artemisiae scopariae extracts and evaluate its antioxidant capacity by TLC-bioautography. METHODS Single wavelength TLC-scanning method was used to determinate the concertration of chlorogenic acid. Then, the chromatograms were obtained after spraying with 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl free radicals (DPPH) solution and the peak areas of the spots on TLC were calculated to evaluate the antioxidant capacity of Herba Artemisiae scopariae extracts. RESULTS The contents of chlorogenic acid determined by TLC-bioautography is consistent with routine method，and the total integral value measured by bioautography is significantly higher than the single peak area of chlorogenic acid. The results indicated Herba Artemisiae scopariae had many antioxidant active ingredients besides chlorogenic acid. CONCLUSION With DPPH as color developing reagent and dual wavelength scanning, TLC-bioautography can be used for fast selecting and evaluating the antioxidant capacity of traditional Chinese medicines