Abstract: In view of the scattered and disordered distribution of rural settlements and the shortage of land resources, many scholars have studied rural settlements, but the research results are relatively independent and lack of systematic integration. This paper adopts the literature analysis method, and summarizes the research on the optimization of rural residential area from five aspects of the optimization theory of rural settlements, distribution characteristics, influencing factors, research methods, and the optimization model. It analyzes the possible deficiencies in the current research and the enlightenment to the future research direction and content.