A simple and sensitive method is presented for the determination of ranitidine hydrochloride (RNH). The method is based on the reaction of RNH with sodium periodate in acidic medium to liberate iodine. The liberated iodine then bleaches the dye crystal violet (CV). The dye shows absorption maximum at 600nm. The calibration graph is found to be linear over the range 400-500 µg mL^-1. The molar absorptivity and Sandell’s sensitivity values are found to be 1.9858×10³ Lmol^-1cm^-1 and 0.1767 µg cm^-2 respectively. The method is successfully applied for the determination of ranitidine hydrochloride in pharmaceutical preparations.