The amino acid compositions of the virion proteins of several tobamoviruses isolated in China were determined. A classification computed from these and published data of other tobamoviruses was compared with published data of their relatedness assessed using the cDNA:RNA molecular hybridization technique. The classifications are clearly congruent; that based on amino acid composition appears to be best for determining the hierarchical relationships of members within a taxonomic group, rather than for distinguishing between closely related members, whereas nucleic acid hybridization unequivocally places a virus into the appropriate subgroup but is less useful for determining distant relationships.