Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising therapeutic modality for tumor. It uses photosensitizer to absorb visible-near-infrared light, and produces reactive oxygen species (ROS) with the participation of tissue oxygen, which induces apoptosis or necrosis of tumor cells. PDT is minimally invasive, has high selectivity for cancer, and has good patient compliance due to the simplicity of the procedure; therefore, PDT is widely used as a palliative and salvage treatment in patients with various gastrointestinal malignancies. This paper reviews the domestic and foreign literatures of the photodynamic therapy for gastrointestinal malignant neoplasms. The disease types, case numbers, photosensitizers used, follow-up dates, efficacy and safety were collected, the challenges and recent research progress were also summarized, in order to comprehensively and objectively understand the application and research progress of PDT in the treatment of gastrointestinal cancer, and explore the current new applications, existing problems and development prospects.