The oxygen and moisture resistance of packaging materials are highly related to the life of electronic products, the conversion efficiency of solar cells and the shelf life of food. It is critical to develop biodegradable barrier materials for packaging responding to the goals of double-carbon target and ban on free plastic bags. Recently, cellulose has been widely used in flexible packaging due to the advantages in abundant resources, renewability and barrier properties. Our current study integrated research progress of cellulose-based barrier materials over the years mainly aiming to different sizes, structures and physicochemical properties of cellulose. We further elucidated the preparation and properties of oxygen and moisture resistance among barrier films, regenerated cellulose、cellulose derivatives and nanocelluloses according the diversity of in barrier mechanisms. Especially, comparative analyses were employed to explore performance of composite barrier films between different cellulose matrices or functional fillers. Meanwhile, we summarize the advanced applications of cellulose-based barrier films in the field of packaging and the challenges in the development process of multi-component cellulose-based packaging barrier film materials are prospected.