Carbon dioxide reforming of methane to syngas was investigated over a series of MgO promoted Ni/CNT catalysts. MgO played a critical role in improving the catalytic performance of Ni/CNT. The results showed that the addition of MgO strengthened the interaction of Ni and interior surface of CNT. Highly dispersed nickel particles with small size (less than 4.5 nm) were also observed in MgO modified CNT. Otherwise, the NiO nanoparticles were facilely reduced over the catalyst prepared with a narrow size of CNT, as shown in H2-TPR. The reaction tests demonstrated that the Ni-based catalyst with an addition of MgO and narrow size of CNT exhibited better catalytic activity. Furthermore, the lifetime of Ni-based catalyst was prolonged effectively after adding MgO, attributed to the stabilization and dispersion of Ni particles and the effective restraint on the gasification of CNT.