Acute pharyngitis belongs to the category of “acute throat impediment” in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which has a high incidence and is easy to recur. In clinical practice of TCM, Chinese patent medicines with the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, reducing swelling and relieving pain are widely used in the treatment of acute pharyngitis. These medicines have the advantages of definite efficacy, low side effects, and low risk of developing drug resistance. However, at present, there are no standardized clinical diagnostic and therapeutic evaluation norms for acute pharyngitis in TCM, which has hindered the application of TCM in the prevention and treatment of acute pharyngitis and the development of new TCM preparations. Therefore, the China Association of Chinese Medicine initiated this expert consensus, which was led the formulation by Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences. This expert consensus integrates the current best evidence and extensive clinical expert experience from the front line, covering seven aspects: applicable scope, diagnosis in both Chinese and Western medicine, syndrome classification and evaluation scales, basis for efficacy evaluation, and time for efficacy evaluation. It has formed 8 types of TCM syndromes for acute pharyngitis, as well as the diagnostic criteria, syndrome classification and evaluation scales, evaluation basis for efficacy, and scoring standards for syndromes and diseases. This expert consensus can be used to standardize the diagnosis of the TCM syndromes of acute pharyngitis, as well as the core indicators and evaluation methods for syndrome and disease efficacy, with the aim of providing references for clinical practice and scientific research on acute pharyngitis.