•Photodynamic therapy has brought a new option for the treatment of gastric cancer.•Some data have confirmed that photodynamic therapy combined with chemotherapy shows better efficacy in the treatment of gastric cancer, but whether it has the same effect when combined with targeted therapy or immunotherapy remains to be further investigated.•Photodynamic therapy combined with drug therapy can even achieve complete remission in some patients with gastric cancer.•According to clinical experiments and experience, photodynamic therapy has a broad prospect in the treatment of gastric cancer. The incidence rate and mortality of gastric cancer remain elevated. Traditionally, surgical treatment (including endoscopic surgery and traditional surgery), chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy were used for the treatment of gastric cancer. Although the emergence of targeted therapy and immunotherapy can effectively prolong the survival of some patients with gastric cancer and improve the quality of life of patients after chemotherapy or surgery, the overall survival rate of gastric cancer has not been significantly improved. Photodynamic therapy is a local photochemical therapy with the advantages of high safety, few adverse reactions, and repeatability, although it may cause some toxic reactions. There are some differences between East and West in the treatment of gastric cancer with PDT, and most earlier studies concentrated on using PDT alone. However, some studies have indicated that PDT may enhance the efficacy of chemotherapy and other medications. This paper summarizes the study on the use of PDT and its combination therapy in gastric cancer, which is anticipated to offer novel thoughts for the treatment of gastric cancer.