Sprouting, an effective means of regeneration in woody plants, gives the forest community a great resilience. However, most previous studies focused on seedling regeneration, so the importance of sprouting regeneration in forests are still not well understood. Using a 5 hm² plot of subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in Gutianshan National Nature Reserve of Qianjiangyuan National Park, we quantitatively analyzed the characteristics of sprouting in woody plants, and the variations of the sprouting abilities of different taxa and different functional groups. Results showed that:(1) 64% of species and 20% of individuals had sprouted, and sprouted stems accounted for 24% of the total individuals in the plot. (2) There were significant differences in sprouting ability both on the species level and on the family level (F=13.11, P < 0.001; F=27.45, P < 0.001). More precisely, the species Corylopsis glandulifera, Chimonanthus salicifolius, Viburnum erosum, Eurya rubiginosa var. attenuata, and Pieris formosa, and those in Calycanthaceae, Caprifoliaceae, Magnoliaceae, and Fagaceae had high sprouting abilities. (3) There were significant differences among different vertical structure layers in sprouting ability (F=117.5, P < 0.001), and the sprouting abilities of species in the shrub layer were about twice those in the canopy layer and sub-canopy layer. Significant differences in sprouting ability were also detected between different life forms (evergreen vs. deciduous), where the sprouting ability in evergreen groups was higher than that in deciduous groups (P < 0.001). Sprouting regeneration plays an important role in subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest and may be one of the mechanisms related to species diversity maintenance and community succession. Shrub species and evergreen species have strong sprouting ability, implying that sprouting may be a plant strategy for shade tolerance.