Lipid and fatty acid compositions of the free lipids in Panax ginseng (Korea, Japan and China), Panax quinquefolium (America, Canada) and Panax notoginseng (China) were studied by means of silicic acid column chromatography, thin-layer chromatography and gas-liquid chromatography. Free lipid contents were 1.13 to 1.24% in panax ginseng and 0.87 to 1.18% in Panax quinquefolium and 0.39% in panax notoginseng. Neutral lipid fractions were 81.2 to 84.4%, while glycolipid fractions 8.01% to 14.47% and phospholipid fractions 3.49 to 5.74% in free lipid contents. The major components were triglycerides, free sterols, diglyceride, free fatty acids and sterol esters in neutral lipid fractions, sterol glucoside, monogalactosyl diglyceride, digalactosyl diglyceride, esterified steryl glucoside in glycolipid fractions and phosphatidyl glycerol, phosphatide, ethanolamine, phosphatidyl choline in phospholipid fractions. The contents and compositions of neutral lipids and glyclipids were some different among various ginsengs, whereas phospholipids showed relatively similar compositions in the contents. Seventeen fatty acids were analyzed in the four free lipid fractions from the various ginsengs and the main fatty acids were linoleic acid, palmitic acid, oleic acid and linolenic acid. It was found that the amounts of some fatty acids were different among the various ginsengs, but the fatty acid patterns of these ginsengs were on the whole similar.