To evaluate the quality of Polyporus umbellatus, we established a simple, repeatable and reliable method based on high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for specific chromatogram and fingerprint analysis, which was applied to analyze samples of medicinal materials and decoction pieces collected from different regions. Finally, ten characteristic peaks were designated in the specific chromatograms and applied to the authenticate identification of P. umbellatus samples. Nine common peaks were designated in the fingerprints, and then the similarities between 32 batches of samples were calculated. Among them, eight compounds were identified by HPLC-APCI-IT-TOF-MSn, four of which were identified in specific chromatograms and four in fingerprints. In the present study, we, for the first time, combined HPLC specific chromatograms and fingerprints for the species identification and quality evaluation of P. umbellatus. Collectively, our findings provided a new method for establishing a comprehensive quality standard of P. umbellatus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]