By overviewing the characteristic functional components of the citrus peel and its physiological activities such as antioxidant, anti-bacteria and anti-inflammation, hypoglycemia and lipid-lowering, the current domestic and international situation of citrus peel processing and its applications, summarized in this review, and the technical solutions to comprehensive processing and applications in a stepwise manner, were also discussed. Finally, the future directions on the researches and applications of the citrus peel were prospected.