Abstract: Sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) is an advanced nuclear reactor technology that employs fast neutrons and liquid metallic sodium as a coolant. The development history and current status of SFR technology were systematically reviewed in this paper. Firstly, the early international development of SFRs was reviewed, the core concepts of the generation Ⅳ nuclear energy systems were explored, and the development status of SFRs since the 21st century was analyzed. Secondly, the main development trends and key technological development pathways of SFR technology were summarized. Finally, an in-depth analysis and outlook for the future development trends of SFR were provided in China. Through the systematic summary of SFR technology, its future development direction and potential are revealed, providing important theoretical support and reference for subsequent engineering practices.