Inhibitory effects of tea extracts EGCG, GCG and ECG on melanoma cell B16 from mouse were studied in this paper. Cells were treated with different concentrations of GCG, ECG, EGCG and Arbutin, and their morphology was observed in an inverted microscope. The proliferation rate of B16 was determined using MTT method, tyrosinase activity was detected by using L–DOPA as substrate, and NaOH–lysis approach was employed to measure the melanin synthesis. The results showed that EGCG, ECG, GCG could significantly inhibit the melanogenesis and tyrosinase activity in cells B16 with a dose–dependent manner. The proliferation rate would be lower than 50% when the concentration was increased to 60 μg/mL. Compared with the control group, tyrosinase activities affected by the three substances were reduced by 26.67%, 27.27% and 32.71%, respectively, the melanin inhibition rates were all above 30%. In conclusion, tea extracts could efficiently inhibit melanogenesis. The inhibitory effect of GCG was best, followed by ECG, EGCG, and arbutin in turn.