The present study was designed to determine the composition of the essential oil from Xylopia aethiopica powder dried fruits using GC and MS The principal constituents identified in the fruits oil were β-pinene (15.06%), α- pinene (7.38%), β-phellandrene (8.24%), and Naphthalene (4.59%). The cytotoxicity of the volatile oil was evaluated in vitro using brine shrimp lethality test and using 3-(4,5-dimethyl thiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) by using Vero cell line with different concentration (500, 250 and 125 μg/ml) in comparison to triton-x100 (the reference control) which verified the safety of the examined extract with an IC₅₀ less 100 μg/ml.