OBJECTIVE: To establish the method for simultaneous determination of 21 inorganic elements in Hypericum japonicum. METHODS: ICP-MS method was adopted. The power was 1 300 W; flow rate of cooling gas was 1.5 L/min; flow rate of carrier gas was 0.8 L/min; flow rate of auxiliary gas was 0.2 L/min; integration time was 10 s; delay time of 1 s; repetition times was one time; measurement mode was standard curve method. SPSS 16.0 statistical software was used for relationship analysis and main component analysis. RESULTS: The linear range of iron, magnesium, calcium, aluminum, potassium, sodium, zinc, cobalt, nickel, barium, manganese, phosphorus, selenium, titanium, strontium, copper, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury were 50-250 μg/mL(r=0.997 2), 25-100 μg/mL(r=0.998 9),25-100 μg/mL(r=0.997 7), 2.5-15 μg/mL(r=0.999 6), 25-150 μg/mL(r=0.999 1), 2.5-15 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9), 2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0. 0.999 9), 2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 8), 2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 6), 0.5-2 μg/mL(r=0.999 5),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),0.5-2 μg/mL(r=0.998 3),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 7), 2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),2.5-10 μg/mL(r=0.999 9),0.05-0.2 μg/mL(r=0.999 2),0.05-0.2 μg/mL(r=0.999 7), respectively. RSDs of precision, stability and reproducibility tests were all lower than 5.0%. The recoveries were 93.9%-106.9%(RSD were 0.22%-2.94%,n=6).CONCLUSIONS: The method is simple, precise, stable and reproducible, and can be used for simultaneous determination of 21 inorganic elements in H. japonicum.