Abstract: Contact fatigue failure of rolling bearing is one of the main failure modes of rolling bearings. In this paper, the research on influencing factors of contact fatigue failure of rolling bearings was summarized, including material quality, processing technology, heat treatment quality, surface state, lubrication state, design and assembly, service environment and conditions. And the development trend of this field was discussed. In order to improve the fatigue life of rolling contact, the design, manufacturing, precision control and lubrication should be improved. The contact fatigue failure of rolling bearings is a multi-factor coupling. The failure analysis must be carried out for specific bearings before effective preventive measures can be taken.