Objective To optimize the extracting process of the water-soluble active component of Salvia yunnanensis C. H. Wright by orthogonal design. Methods The extracting process was studied by orthogonal design，which includes ethanol concentration and alcohol amount and extracting hours and extracting times，with the content of salvianolic acid B by RP-HPLC and the yield of extraction of the Salvia yunnanensisC. H. Wright. as the indexes for screening the extracting condition. Results The best extraction condition of salvianolic acid B from Salvia yunnanensis C. H. Wright. was：adding eight times 20％ethyl alcohol，extracting for 3 times，each time 1hr. Conclusion The optimized extracting process for salvianolic acid B from Salvia yunnanensisC. H. Wright was satable and feasible with operability，and can provide experimental evidence for the extraction of the water-soluble active component of Salvia yunnanensisC. H. Wright．