A total of 39 essential oils were tested for antifungal activities as volatile compounds against five phytopathogenic fungi at a dose of 1 μl per plate. Five essential oils showed inhibitory activities against mycelial growth of at least one phytopathogenic fungus. Origanum vulgare essential oil inhibited mycelial growth of all of the five fungi tested. Both Cuminum cyminum and Eucalyptus citriodora oils displayed in vitro antifungal activities against four phytopathogenic fungi except for Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. The essential oil of Thymus vulgaris suppressed the mycelial growth of C. gloeosporioides, Fusarium oxysporum and Rhizoctonia solani and that of Cymbopogon citratus was active to only F. oxysporum. The chemical compositions of the five active essential oils were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. This study suggests that both E. citriodora and C. cyminum oils have a potential as antifungal preservatives for the control of storage diseases of various crops.