Objective Previous studies showed that eight volatile components were separated from aromatic water which were extracted from 6 kinds of Chinese herbal pieces (including tangerine peel, herba artemisiae scopariae and others) in the prescription of Ganxi tablet. Of the eight volatile components, limonene, γ-terpene, borneol and β-pinene had anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidation and anti-tumor effects. Here, we aimed to analyze the volatile constituents of all the Chinese herbal pieces in the prescription of Ganxi tablet by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).Methods The aromatic water was extracted from Ganxi tablet by steam distillation, and its components were analyzed by GC-MS.Results A total of 28 volatile components were detected in the aromatic water extracted from all the Chinese herbal pieces in Ganxi tablet. The highest content component was D-camphor (48.45%), followed by benzaldehyde (12.46%) and aromatic ketone (8.69%), with a total of 69.6%, but none of them had significant pharmacological effects. A few other components had pharmacological effects, but in very low content.Conclusion It is not suitable to use the whole formula when extracting the volatile components of Ganxi tablet. It is preferred to choose the 6 kinds of Chinese herbal pieces like tangerine peel, herba artemisiae scopariae, agarwood and others which contain volatile components to extract aromatic water.