Purpose: The aim of this study was to understand the relationship between teacher leadership and collective teacher efficacy in Chinese upper secondary schools. Design/methodology/approach: Based on survey answers from 1,074 upper secondary teachers in a Chinese city, path analysis was conducted to understand the relationship. Findings: This study identified that a number of dimensions of teacher leadership (recognition, collegiality, participation and positive environment) had positive relationships with group competence. Meanwhile, the dimensions of developmental focus, participation and positive environment had positive relationships with task analysis. Additionally, when the authors treated collective efficacy as a single variable, the dimensions of developmental focus, congeniality, participation and positive environment had positive relationships with collective efficacy. Originality/value: This study is to understand the relationship between teacher leadership and collective teacher efficacy in a collective culture and hierarchical education system.