Spatial transcriptome technologies aim to quantitatively measure the gene expression of cells and provide information on the specific location of cells in tissue space. Compared with traditional transcriptome technologies, the spatial transcriptome technologies can obtain the true gene expression characteristics of cells in the tissue in physiological environment and its relationship with the microenvironment, further advancing the understanding of cell characteristics in normal and pathological states. In recent years, significant progress has been made in the development of spatial transcriptome technologies. The cell throughput, detected quantity and quality of transcripts have been continuously improved, and the spatial location information has become more accurate and comprehensive. This paper reviews the development and applications of spatial transcriptome technologies, which were classified into 4 major categories based on in situ hybridization, high-throughput sequencing, in situ sequencing, and live cell barcodes, respectively. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages so that should be applied in different situations, and it is foreseeable that these spatial transcriptome technologies will continue to be improved, including preventing RNA degradation, improving detection throughput and efficiency, reducing costs, and obtaining complete spatial single-cell transcriptomes. At the same time, based on the acquisition of cell spatial information, future spatial transcriptome technologies will be combined with the dimension of time, further improve the level of transcriptome research from the perspective of spatiotemporal transcriptome, and continuously deepen the understanding of the true characteristics of tissue cells, so as to advance the understanding of developmental processes, cancer and other malignant diseases and the development of new treatments.