Catalytic membrane, a novel membrane separation technology that combines catalysis and separation, exhibits significant potential in gas purification such as formaldehyde, toluene and nitrogen oxides (NOx). The catalytic membrane can remove solid particles through membrane separation and degrade gaseous pollutants to clean gas via a catalytic reaction to achieve green emissions. In this review, we discussed the recent developments of catalytic membranes from two aspects: preparation of catalytic membrane and its application in gas cleaning. Catalytic membranes are divided into organic catalytic membranes and inorganic catalytic membranes depending on the substrate materials. The organic catalytic membranes which are used for low temperature operation (less than 300 degrees C) are prepared by modifying the polymers or doping catalytic components into the polymers through coating, grafting, or in situ growth of catalysts on polymeric membrane. Inorganic catalytic membranes are used at higher temperature (higher than 500 degrees C). The catalyst and inorganic membrane can be integrated through conventional deposition methods, such as chemical (physical) vapor deposition and wet chemical deposition. The application progress of catalytic membrane is focused on purifying indoor air and industrial exhaust to remove formaldehyde, toluene, NOx and PM2.5, which are also summarized. Perspectives on the future developments of the catalytic membranes are provided in terms of material manufacturing and process optimization. (C) 2019 The Chemical Industry and Engineering Society of China, and Chemical Industry Press Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.