A method for measuring waveform capture rate (WRC) of DSO based on average dead time measurement. First generating ramp signal or symmetric triangular wave signal as base signal, a trigger signal, the frequency which is higher than the nominal maximum waveform capture rate of the DSO under measurement; secondly, setting the parameters of DSO for measuring; then obtaining a plurality of test signals by delaying base signal K times with different delay time, for each test signal, inputting it the trigger signal simultaneously to DSO, calculating dead time between two adjacent captured waveforms according to their initial voltages, finally calculating waveform capture rate based on average dead times. The waveform capture rate obtained can effectively reflect the overall capturing capacity of DSO, more tellingly, the waveform capturing capacity of acquisition system of DSO.