As a novel bioaffinity chromatography technique, cell membrane chromatography (CMC) was first established by Professor He in 1996, with which combined high performance liquid chromatography, cytobiology, and receptor pharmacology. The cell membrane stationary phase (CMSP) consists of porous silica coated with active cell membranes. By immersing silica into a suspension of cell membranes, the whole surface of silica was covered by the cell membranes. In CMC, the interaction of drugs or compounds with the immobilized cell membrane or its receptors is investigated using liquid chromatography. In general, with the aim to provide scientific foundation for further development and application, this paper mainly focuses on the characteristics of the cell membrane stationary phase (CMSP), the CMC analytical system, and its applications in traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) about CMC. With the development of CMC, the breakthrough progress of it in studying active components of TCMs field is expectant.