Infrared detection is a passive detection technology with the potential to supplement radar in identifying targets. A crucial metric for this technology is its operating range, which has been a challenging yet popular area of research to evaluate. Considering the varied and starkly contrasting methods for assessing the performance of infrared detection systems, this review offers a thorough summary of existing evaluation techniques and categorizes them into five groups: visual inspection, laboratory calibration, field measurement, simulation evaluation, and cross-validation. In addition, a detailed analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each evaluation method is provided. Finally, the challenges and future trends in this field are discussed and analyzed. This review is beneficial for beginners to start quickly and also provides a reference for further research in this field.