Litopenaeus vannamei is one of the major cultivated species of shrimp products in China. With the rapid development of aquaculture technology, the production of L. vannamei has continued to rise in recent years, which has become an important economic pillar for export earnings and rural revitalization in coastal regions. The primary commercial processing products of L. vannamei include shrimp meat, shrimp surimi products, frozen whole shrimp, and preprocessed frozen shrimp. Substantial quantities of by-products (heads and shells) are generated during processing, yet current utilization strategies remain underdeveloped. As a result, issues such as resource waste, environmental pollution, and the reuse of by-products are receiving increasing attention. This review systematically examines the nutrition and bioactive compounds in processing by-products of L. vannamei and discusses techniques for their extraction and recovery, including supercritical CO₂ extraction, enzymatic hydrolysis, and microbial fermentation. Furthermore, this study analyzes the high-value utilization status of these bioactive components in food and pharmaceutical applications, identifies key technical bottlenecks, and proposes directions for future innovation.