The Folin-Ciocalteu (F-C) reagent has been extensively used for quantifying total phenolic contents in many different types of food materials. Since several different procedures of the assay methods using the F-C reagent have been applied, we investigated changes in reactivity of various phenolic compounds with the F-C reagent under three different assay conditions and factors affecting reactivity. Among 10 standard compounds tested, compounds with high hydroxyl density (number of -OH/molecular weight) showed a largely different response according to addition sequence of the F-C reagent or $Na_2CO_3$. Preincubation in $Na_2CO_3$ significantly reduced the reactivity of the phenolic compounds bearing galloyl moiety (e.g. gallic acid, tannic acid, and epigallocatechin-3-gallate) with the F-C reagent, while monophenol compounds including ferulic acid and sinapinic acid were more stable as compared to diphenols. There was little change in response to the F-C reagent of all phenolic compounds incubated in acidic pH; their reactivity except ferulic acid was reduced significantly when incubated in neutral or alkaline pH. Changes in reactivity of gallic acid incubated in $Na_2CO_3$ or neutral/alkaline pH conditions were the most prominent. $H_2O_2$ generated from phenolic compounds did not affect the reaction with the F-C reagents. The present results suggest that reactivity of different phenolic compounds with F-C reagent was affected considerably by different procedures of the assay, and the total phenolic contents could be fluctuated according to standard compounds and assay scheme.