Total ginsenosides were purified and their antioxidant, antibacterial and anticancer activities were measured. The crude extracts of ginseng, which were extracted with 75% ethanol by ultrasonification method, were firstly purified on AB-8 macroporous adsorption column to remove water soluble impurities, and decolored on Amberlite IRA 900 Cl anion-exchange column. Then, they were purified on Amberlite XAD16 adsorption column to delete the non-polar impurities. Total ginsenosides contents of the purified extracts were 79.4%, 71.7% and 72.5% in cultured wild ginseng, red ginseng and white ginseng, which were significantly increased than those of crude extracts. All of the three extracts showed concentration-dependant scavenging activities against DPPH radicals, among which white ginseng showed the most powerful activity. Cultured wild ginseng roots showed strongest effect against both B. subtilis PM 125(Gram-positive) and E. coli D31 (Gram-negative) bacteria, while red ginseng and white ginseng only showed the activity against B. subtilis. According to the result of the MTT assay, ail of the three extracts inhibited the growth of U-937 human hohistiocytic lympma cell, which were significantly different (p < 0.05) when compared to the control.