The paper evaluates the most common sensory, physical, physicochemical and biochemical methods of determining the degree of ripeness of tomato fruits. On the example of small-fruit varieties with red, orange, yellow and brown colors of ripe fruits, an attempt was made to create a universal scale to assess the degree of ripeness of tomato fruits based on the physiological state of the fruits. The paper presents data on the quantitative content of endogenous ethylene in fruits with certain ripeness level.