Objective To explore application value of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in treatment of unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma. Method The literatures about PDT in the treatment of the unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma in the PubMed, MedLine, Embase, CNKI, and Wanfang databases were reviewed. Results The PDT combined with stent or chemotherapy was the main method in the treatment of the unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma, which could make the tumor down-staging, obviously reduce the jaundice, improve the quality of life, improve the survival rate, prolong the stent patency and be treated repeatedly. Especially, it was suitable for the patients with elderly, poor health, intolerance of surgery, could partly replace the R1 or R2 operation of hilar cholangiocarcinoma and avoid the risk of surgery and postoperative complications. The therapeutic effective of the PDT was related to the early therapy and times of therapy. However, the shortcomes of the PDT were that the depth of killing tumor was not enough and there was a certain incidence of adverse reaction. Conclusions Therapeutic effect of PDT combine with stent or chemotherapy for unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma is better than that of single therapy. It is expected to be a first-line scheme of palliative treatment for unresectable hilar cholangiocarcinoma.