Mg-based hydrogen storage materials have attracted much attention because of their low price, high hydrogen storage capacity and fine safety. However, its higher temperature of hydrogen absorption and desorption and slow kinetic properties limit its further research and application in hydrogen storage. Recent research mainly focus on exploring different modification methods to obtain low cost, large quantities, small particles and high stability of MgH2 nanopowders, and some progress has been made; However, it is still a great challenge to obtain magnesium-based alloy hydrogen storage materials which have ideal thermodynamic properties and practical application value at ambient temperature. In this review, we summarized recent progress in the research on magnesium-based alloy hydrogen storage materials, and further categorized reported methods on changing thermodynamic and kinetic properties of magnesium-based alloy, to provide better empirical and theoretical support for obtaining magnesium-based hydrogen storage materials with high capacity and excellent kinetic & thermodynamic properties in hydrogen adsorption & desorption.