Ecological groundwater table is not only the key limiting factor to maintain ecosystem stability in arid areas, but also is affected by the characteristics of climate change, vegetation and soil physical and chemical properties change. Based on the review of the development and intension of ecological groundwater table, the research progress on the factors of ecological water level was analyzed. And some calculation methods were summarized. Combining the key scientific problem in the ecological hydrogeology field, the future research direction was put forward.