Objective We aimed to determine the efficacy and complication of sevoflurane maintenance in children. Methods Trials were collected through electronic searches of MEDLINE, EBSCO, OVID, Springer, Foreign Journals Integration System, CNKI, and CMBdisk (from the date of building the database to April 2008). We also checked the bibliographies of retrieved articles. Results A total of 20 trials involving 1 592 patients were included. The Metaanalysis showed: ① Recovery time: sevoflurane was similar with propofol [WMD=0.22, 95%CI (–2.86, 3.30)], but slower than desflurane [WMD=5.01, 95%CI (2.87, 7.16)], and faster than isoflurane [WMD= –0.55, 95%CI (– 0.74, –0.37)]; ② Discharge time: sevoflurane was similar with propofol [WMD= –4.39, 95%CI (–10.02, 1.25)], desflurane[WMD=1.13, 95%CI (–3.25, 5.51)], and isoflurane [WMD= –8.17, 95%CI (–17.94, 1.60)]; ③ Postoperative agitation: sevoflurane was much more obvious than propofol [RR=5.53, 95%CI (2.99, 10.21)], but superior than desflurane [RR=0.55, 95%CI (0.35, 0.88)], and similar with isoflurane [RR=1.24, 95%CI (0.85, 1.800]; ④ Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV): sevoflurane was much more severe than propofol [RR=2.17, 95%CI (1.21, 3.90)], and no difference with desflurane [RR=0.88, 95%CI (0.61, 1.25)]; ⑤ Oculocardiac reflex: sevoflurane was less than propofol [RD= – 0.42, 95%CI (–0.56, –0.27)], and no difference with desflurane [RR=0.93, 95%CI (0.61, 1.41)]. Conclusion The limited current evidence shows no difference between sevoflurane and propofol in recovery time, while the effect of sevoflurane is faster than isoflurane and slower than desflurane. There are no differences among sevoflurane, desflurane, isoflurane, and propofol in discharge time. The incidence of postoperative agitation of sevoflurane is higher than that of propofol, but lower than that of other inhaled anesthetics. The incidence of PONV of sevoflurane is higher than that of propofol. The incidence of oculocardiac reflex of sevoflurane is lower than that of propofol and similar with that of desflurane.