Objective Danshen dripping pill (DSP) and tongxinluo capsule (TXL) are popular Chinese medicinal products and often compared with isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) in treating angina pectoris. Hundreds of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about DSP and TXL have been published; however, there has been no systematic review on comparing DSP with TXL. This study aims to provide a comprehensive PRISMA-compliant systematic review with sensitivity analysis and subgroup analysis to valuate indirectly the efficacies of DSP and TXL in treating angina pectoris. Methods RCTs published between 1994 and 2009 on DSP and TXL in treating angina pectoris for four or more weeks were retrieved from databases. The qualities of RCTs included were evaluated with Jadad scale. Meta-analysis was performed on overall effects of symptomatic and electrocardiographic (ECG) improvements. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were used to measure the effect size. Subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis and meta-regression were conducted on basic characteristics of RCTs. Results 65 RCTs with 6 969 participants were included. Average Jadad score was 2.11. Overall ORs were 3.66 (95%CI 2.67 to 5.02) for TXL versus ISDN and 2.38 (95%CI 1.90 to 2.99) for DSP versus ISDN. There was a significant difference (W=521.5, P=0.049 45) in ORs between DSP and TXL. Statistical analyses found no significant factors affecting overall efficacies of TXL and DSP. The rates of adverse events under DSP and TXL treatments were 2.37% and 2.11%, respectively. Conclusion DSP and TXL are more effective than ISDN in treating angina pectoris. TXL might be more effective than DSP. However, further RCTs of larger scale, multi-centre/country, longer follow-up periods and higher quality are still required to verify.