This paper summarizes the advances and challenges in spider taxonomy of China. A table comparing the number of valid genera and species in China, Europe and the world is provided. To date, the Chinese spider fauna is represented by 5,084 species, under 809 genera in 69 spider families. An “All Species Inventory” of spiders in Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden provides an example of China’s spider species richness, with more than 782 species recorded within a small area. Intensified research in recent years has grown the national catalog of Chinese spiders from 1,050 species in 1983 to 5,084 species today. There are reasons to believe that spider species richness in China will far exceed this grand total. With enhanced support and investment in spider taxonomic research, many more new species will be discovered and described in China