Quantitative temperature reconstruction has always been one of the most challenging issues in paleoclimate research. It can potentially verify the simulations of climate change and provide necessary background knowledge for past temperature in the context of global change. With the discovery of long-chain unsaturated alkenones and the development of organic geochemistry, which provide the possibility for the quantitative reconstruction. The Tibetan Plateau has played an important role in global climate change research due to its influence on the environmental evolution in East Asia since the Cenozoic. However, high-quality paleoclimate records are still limited which greatly restrict our understanding of the climatic mechanisms. During the last three decades, the long-chain alkenones-based proxies have been widely used in water temperature reconstructions, both in marine and lake environment. In addition, the plateau offers an ideal natural laboratory for paleoclimate reconstruction using alkenones as there is a wide distribution and large number of lakes. This paper will summary the up-to-date alkenones research in lakes, including the following aspects: alkenone-producing haptophyte algae, calibration methods for alkenone paleothermometer, alkenone-based proxies and the sedimentary alkenone records, with its focus on Tibetan Plateau lakes to present prospects for the future studies on alkenones in this region.