The inherent problems of traditional high-temperature electrolytic process for aluminium production are pointed out. On this basis, the structure and properties of ionic liquids as novel low-temperature molten salts are summarized. The typical features, recent research and application progress in low-temperature electrolysis of aluminium from ionic liquids are reviewed systematically. The reaction temperature of aluminium electrolysis in ionic liquids drops to below 100℃, even near room temperature. The energy consumption is generally lower than 10 kW×h/kg. Meanwhile, the release of waste products, such as CO2, CO and HF, is notably reduced. When aluminium is used as soluble anode, this technology can also be used in aluminium refining, preparation of relative alloys and nano-crystalline powder. It not only increases the current efficiency and purity of products, but also expands the categories of production and research fields in aluminium industry. Future work should gain deep insight into the relationship between molecular structure and physicochemical properties of ionic liquids. And it is necessary to establish regulation mechanism of electrochemical reaction and accomplish the scale-up of technology.