红豆杉目在生物分类学上是红豆杉纲中的唯一目，在传统分类学中，红豆杉纲隶属于裸子植物门，但新的分类法认为裸子植物的五个纲（松柏纲、苏铁纲、银杏纲、买麻藤纲、红豆杉纲）并不都属于一个单系群，因此单独分为四个门，红豆杉目被合并到松柏纲中。

The plant order Taxales was until recently treated as a distinct order in the division Pinophyta, class Pinopsida, and included only those species in the family Taxaceae, known commonly as yews. Under this interpretation, all other conifers were classified separately in the order Pinales. Recent genetic and micromorphological studies, however, have shown the Taxaceae are closely related to the other conifers, particularly so to the family Cephalotaxaceae. The order Taxales is therefore no longer recognised as distinct, and the family Taxaceae is now included in the order Cupressales. See Pinophyta for more details.