A multiple reference peak identification method using a Lotus 1-2-3® spreadsheet program is developed for off-line identification and editing of chromatographic peaks on a PC-XT/AT compatible computer. There is no apparent limit to the total number of reference peaks. Any peak, regardless of size, can be used as a reference peak as long as it is well-resolved and present in both the sample and reference chromatograms. The identification is made by matching normalized retention indices of peaks in the sample chromatogram with those of known components in a calibration chromatogram. The accuracy of peak assignment is typically better than 95%. The identification and editing of a chromatogram from a capillary gas chromatograph containing 200 peaks takes about 15 min. The software program is almost completely menu driven.