With the research development of the magnesium alloys, the deformation or stress corrosion induced by residual stress (RS) attracted extensive interests in industry and research efforts extensive. However, there are relatively few studies on the RS of magnesium alloys in the world. The generation cause of RS in magnesium alloys was analyzed at first. Several methods of determinate the RS, including destructive methods (drilling hole, crack compliance, layer exfoliation etc.) and non-destructive methods (X-ray Diffraction, Neutron Diffraction, Short Wavelength X-ray Diffraction) were summarized. The factors that influence the measuring accuracy of XRD method were emphasized. The research trends of RS in magnesium alloys were put forward. Keywords: Residual stress, Magnesium alloys, Stress generation, Stress measurement