Pulmonary rehabilitation is widely regarded as an effective treatment for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in addition to oxygen therapy and pharmacologic therapy. However, there are few studies about pulmonary rehabilitation applied to patients with acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD). We reviewed the articles about early application of pulmonary rehabilitation in AECOPD patients or discharged AECOPD patients in recent years, interpreted the common methods of pulmonary rehabilitation used for the patients, with a view to increasing the awareness of pulmonary rehabilitation in health care providers, and promoting the development of pulmonary rehabilitation for COPD.