Building energy consumption, industrial energy consumption and traffic energy consumption are the main ways of energy consumption. Among them, building energy consumption accounts for about 40 % of energy consumption. The continuous rise of building energy consumption will increase carbon emissions and accelerate the consumption of fossil energy. Therefore, improving the thermal insulation and energy saving performance of building materials has gradually become a research hotspot in the field of building materials. Heat storage technology can not only reduce building energy consumption, but also reduce environmental pollution. Phase change energy storage material has excellent heat storage and release capacity. It is an important technical means to realize thermal energy storage and temperature control, and has broad application prospects in the field of building energy conservation. In this paper, the research progress of gypsum-based composite phase change energy storage materials is reviewed. According to the difference of gypsum-based phase change materials, gypsum-based organic phase change materials and gypsum-based composite phase change materials are analyzed and summarized. The methods and mechanisms of preparing gypsum-based composite phase change energy storage materials, such as impregnation method, porous material adsorption method and microcapsule method, and the factors affecting gypsum-based phase change energy storage materials are introduced. Finally, the research direction of gypsum-based phase change energy storage materials is prospected.