Abstract: The tunnel ahead and station (shaft) following method has the advantages of short construction period, small site area and slight influence on the surrounding environment. Based on the summary and review of 18 practical engineering cases of the construction with tunnel ahead and station (shaft) following method, the method is classified into two categories: tunnel ahead and station following method and tunnel ahead and shaft following method.The tunnel first and shaft following method can be classified into the one for construction without cross passage and the one for construction with cross passage. And the tunnel ahead and shaft following method for construction without cross passage can also be classified into the large-shaft and small-tunnel method and the small-shaft and largetunnel method according to the size of the tunnel and shaft. This paper summarizes the key technologies in the construction process with the tunnel ahead and station (shaft) following method, such as several forms of expanding subway station excavation, supporting form of foundation pit and segment breaking mode with tunnel first and station following method, draws a useful conclusion that the selection conditions of foundation pit support can be applied to the engineering practice with tunnel ahead and station (shaft) following method, looks forward to the future research direction of the tunnel ahead and station (shaft) following method in engineering application, numerical simulation,which provides reference for the promotion and application of tunnel ahead and station (shaft) following method in China.