Vanadium compounds have attracted much attention because they have widely been used for homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis field, especially in the selective oxidation of light alkanes, where vanadium-based catalysts were announced to be one of the most efficient catalysts. The present mini-review analyzed the recent developments for the preparation using new synthesis approaches of vanadium based catalysts, and their catalytic performances in the selective oxidation reactions of light alkanes. The influences of several synthesis strategies on the catalytic performances were illustrated in detail, while the samples characterizations were briefly presented.