The Calymperaceae are a large pantropical moss clade. This paper reports the results of a phylogenetic analysis of the Calymperaceae, with an emphasis on the relationships of the large and putatively polyphyletic Syrrhopodon. Two chloroplast genes, rps4 and trnL, part of the nuclear encoded gpd, and morphological characters were analyzed individually and in combination. The total-evidence phylogenetic tree was used to construct a rank-free classification of the Calymperaceae following the guidelines of the current draft of the PhyloCode. The total-evidence cladistic analysis supports the monophyly of Calymperes and Mitthyridium, as well as the “leucobryoid” Calymperaceae, and confirms that Syrrhopodon (s.l.) is polyphyletic. In the context of this phylogeny, the presence of peristome teeth and bordered leaves are derived features within the Calymperaceae. The rank-free system of classification has several advantages over the Linnaean system for dealing with the taxonomic changes implicit in this phylogeny, primarily with regard to preserving the names of well-supported monophyletic groups such as Mitthyridium. However, we question the utility of article 11.7 of the PhyloCode, and offer some practical observations regarding clade names and the use of type specimens as specifiers.