Energy budgets of larval stages of the Chinese green lacewing, Chrysopa sinica (Tjeder) (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) were determined under laboratory conditions at photoperiod of 14:10 L:D, 27±1℃ and 75%±2% RH. The energy used as ingestion,assimilation, respiration, productivity and feces was constructed for each developmental stage. In addition, under these experimental conditions, the potential of C.sinica as a biological control agent was evaluated according to the ingestion by this predator and the energy content of cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii (Glover) (Homoptera: Aphididae). The larval stage of C. sinica was able to consume 1281.4 1-day-old aphids, 1018.7 2-day-old aphids,626.9 3-day-old aphids, 393.5 4-day-old aphids, 312.1 5-day-old aphids or 203.5 9-day-old aphids, respectively. No significant difference was detected between the estimated number of aphids consumed by the lacewings using energetic methods and the actual number of aphids consumed by the lacewings in this experiment. Our results showed that C. sinica is an important natural enemy of the cotton aphid, and energetic methods are very useful to quantify biological control efficacy of natural enemies.