At present, laparoscopy has been widely used in urology clinics, and has become a routine procedure for the treatment of urological diseases such as renal cysts, adrenal tumors, varicocele, and mid-ureteral stones. It has been accepted by the majority of patients and their families due to its advantages of less trauma, less bleeding, shorter hospitalization days, faster recovery and fewer complications. Renal cancer is one of the common malignant tumors in the urinary system, and its incidence is increasing year by year due to the development of ultrasound, CT and other imaging technologies, especially the detection rate of incidental small renal cancers has increased significantly. Radical nephrectomy is the standard treatment for early-stage limited renal cancer, and the vast majority of patients can be cured of the tumor through surgical treatment. However, traditional radical nephrectomy for kidney cancer requires making a long incision through the waist and cutting off three layers of muscle tissues at the same time, which is traumatizing to patients, with long bed-resting time after the operation and fearful to patients. With the wide application of laparoscopy in urology, the proficiency of laparoscopists’ surgical operation techniques, the accumulation of clinical experience and the improvement of surgical instruments, laparoscopic radical nephrectomy for renal tumors is gradually maturing and being widely used. It has been reported in the literature that for T1 stage renal tumors, laparoscopic surgery will become the gold standard of treatment. Laparoscopic radical nephrectomy for renal tumors has both transperitoneal and retroperitoneal routes to choose from, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. The kidney is located in the retroperitoneal space, and the use of transperitoneal retroperitoneal space approach can directly reach the surgical area, which is more in line with the principles of urological surgery, and does not need to incise the posterior peritoneum, there is no risk of contamination of the peritoneal cavity, and it can maximally avoid intra-abdominal complications, and the recovery of bowel peristalsis is quick after the surgery. The transabdominal route has the advantages of large operating space, obvious anatomical structures, and easy visualization. Thus, the choice of surgical approach depends on the size and location of the tumor as well as the experience of the surgeon. As for the long-term efficacy of laparoscopic surgery for renal tumors, domestic and foreign studies have shown that there is no statistically significant difference between the 5-year and 10-year survival rate of postoperative patients and that of open surgery, indicating that laparoscopic surgery for renal tumors is reliable, safe and effective. In conclusion, laparoscopic radical nephrectomy for renal cancer has the advantages of less trauma, less pain for patients, shorter postoperative hospitalization, faster recovery, safety and effectiveness, etc. With the continuous improvement and popularization of the new technology, laparoscopic technology will gradually replace open surgery and become the direction of urological surgery in the future.