No reports on the isolation of any secondary metabolites from V. ballii are available to date. In a continuation of phytochemical studies on Algerian Saharan plants, the aerial parts of V. ballii (Batt.) M. Qaiser (Scrophulariaceae) were investigated. Two glycosylated iridoids (scrospioside A, scropolioside B) and a triterpenic saponin (verbascosaponin) were isolated from the chloroform extract of its aerial parts. This is the first report of the chemical composition of V. ballii. The study confirmed the importance of saponins and iridoids as major compounds in the Scrophulariaceae family and the proximity of the genera Verbascum, Scrophularia and former genus Celsia. A high content in saponin could explain the toxicity imputed to V. ballii.