Objective To investigate an evaluation method of medical literature applicability to clinical work， and provide a convenient way for physicians to search for the best evidence. Methods Delphi method was used to choose appropriate evaluating indexes， analytic hierarchy process was performed to determine the weighing of each index， and the formula to calculate medical literature applicability was formed. The practicability of this formula was evaluated by consistency checking between the formula’s results and experts’ opinions on literature applicability. Results Five evaluating indexes were determined， including literature’s publishing year （X1）， whether the target questions were covered （X2）, sample size （X3）， trial category （X4）， and journal level （X5）. The formula to calculate medical literature applicability was Y=3.93 X1＋11.78 X2＋14.83 X3＋44.53 X4＋24.93 X5. The result of consistency checking showed that the formula’s results were highly consistent with experts’ opinions （Kappa=0.75， P＜0.001）. Conclusion The applicability formula is a valuable tool to evaluate medical literature applicability.
