Abstract: As a new type of transdermal drug delivery system(TDDS), gel preparation exerts systemic or local therapeutic effects through skin administration. It has become a key point of researches on pharmaceutical preparation in recent years, with advantages of convenient administration, high safety and controlled release. However, most of the existing compounds are in poor solubility, limiting their applications in gel formulations. Many new medicine carriers, including nanotechnology, inclusion compounds and solid dispersions, have been widely used to increase the solubility and enhance the skin transmissibility of drugs. This paper reviews the characteristics of various drug carriers and their advantages and disadvantages in gel preparation in detail. The marketing status of insoluble drug gel products approved by FDA and the specific application of various solubilization techniques in gel preparation are summarize. This paper provide theoretical basis and practical cases for the future research and development of gel preparation.