Rare earth upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) can transform near-infrared light into ultraviolet-visible light, which can effectively solve the problems such as a low tissue penetration depth and a low treatment efficiency of photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy (PACT). The research progress on the photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy based on rare earth upconversion nanoplatforms is reviewed. The development of novel co-antibacterial platform and its clinical applications are prospected.