Drugs are special goods that are directly related to public health, so their quality should be monitored in any link of their whole lifecycle. With nondestructive, rapid and environmentally friendly characteristics, near infrared technique is highly suitable for monitoring drug quality in the open market as well as the distribution channels. The present paper reviewed the current situation (analytical objects, methods and instruments) about the application of near infrared spectroscopy in monitoring the quality of the final drug products, Chinese crude drug or decoction pieces in domestic circulation since 1997, expounded the unsolved problems and future prospects.