Ionic liquids，known for their tunable structures，low volatility，and high selectivity，are considered new and environmentally friendly solvents that can replace traditional solvents.They have gained widespread attention in recent years.This study elucidated the structure，properties，and separation mechanisms of ionic liquids and introduced the application of ionic liquids in Chinese medicine extraction from four aspects，i.e.，microwave-assisted extraction(MAE)，ultrasound-assisted extraction(UAE)，ultrasound-microwave synergistic extraction，and biphasic extraction.