Migraine is a highly prevalent, chronic and disabling illness in which the gap between practice guideline recommendations and actual clinical practice remains wide. Eletriptan, similar to other triptans, is a potent 5-HT(1B/1D) receptor agonist with a high selectivity for cranial versus coronary artery constriction and favorable pharmacokinetic profile. An extensive program of double-blind, placebo-controlled, head-to-head comparator trials has demonstrated the superior efficacy of eletriptan compared with the combination of ergotamine and caffeine, and selected oral triptans for the acute treatment of migraine. Eletriptans tolerability profile makes it a good choice as a first-line treatment of migraine. An early treatment study suggests that treatment of mild headache is associated with unusually high sustained pain-free rates and a tolerability profile that is equivalent to placebo.