Both cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) are noninvasive methods to estimate arterial stiffness. The purpose of this study is to determine whether CAVI or baPWV is superior as an index of arterial stiffness. One hundred and thirty patients with chest pain syndrome who underwent coronary angiography (CAG) were included in this study. We obtained intima-media-thickness (IMT) and the stiffness parameter beta of the carotid artery by carotid ultrasounds (CU). The peak early diastolic velocity (E), deceleration time of E (EDCT), peak atrial systolic velocity (A) of transmitral flow and left ventricular mass index (LVMI) were obtained by echocardiography. CAVI, baPWV, total cholesterol (T-C), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglycerides (TG) were measured before CAG. There was a significant correlation between CAVI and baPWV (r = 0.64, p < 0.01). Both CAVI and baPWV were significantly correlated with age, IMT and beta (age: r = 0.64, p < 0.01 for CAVI, and r = 0.48, p < 0.01 for baPWV; IMT: r = 0.40, p < 0.01, and r = 0.31, p < 0.01; beta: r = 0.36, p < 0.01 and r = 0.25, p < 0.01). However, only CAVI was correlated with the parameters of left ventricular diastolic indices from echocardiography (E/A: r = 0.44, p < 0.01; EDCT: r = 0.36, p < 0.01). Additionally, LDL-C and T-C/HDL-C were also associated with only CAVI (LDL-C: r = 0.26, p < 0.02; T-C/HDL-C: r = 0.30, p < 0.01), not baPWV. Finally, only CAVI was significantly higher in the group with angina pectoris than in the normal group (9.708 +/- 1.423 vs. 9.102 +/- 1.412; p = 0.0178). All parameters associated with atherosclerosis suggested that CAVI was superior to baPWV as a parameter of arterial stiffness.