Abstract: Accurate preoperative staging of gastric cancer is of great significance for choosing an optimal therapeutic schedule and for evaluating the prognosis. Accurate preoperative preparation can avoid unnecessary treatment and help with selecting optimal treatment modalities. In recent years, the preoperative staging of gastric cancer has been greatly improved owing to the use of diagnostic methods such as endoscopic ultrasonography, multi-slice spiral computed tomography, positron emission computed tomography, and staging laparoscopy, among other such modalities. However, all diagnostic methods are associated with advantages and limitations. Thus, a combination of various diagnostic modalities is essential for accurate preoperative staging. This paper reviews the research progress in the aforementioned diagnostic methods for preoperative staging.