Dry eye is a multifactorial disease of the ocular surface characterized by a loss of homeostasis of the tear film, and accompanied by ocular symptoms. In recent years, the incidence of dry eye has been increasing year by year, and the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye are constantly evolving and innovating. However, due to the corresponding drawbacks of traditional examination methods and the lack of a large number of clinical trial studies on new examination methods, there is still no unified standard for the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye. In this review, we have performed a broad search for articles discussing different examination methods for dry eye, including promising diagnostic tools and technique, the latest advances, and contradictions, in order to provide a review of dry eye examination methods including the tear volume, the tear film, the eyelid and meibomian gland, and the degree of damage to the epithelial cells of the ocular surface, and provide a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye.