Abstract: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a common and critical clinical disease. Various infections such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) can cause ARDS. ARDS has a high mortality rate and lacks effective treatment methods. Mesenchymal stem cells(MSC), as a new treatment method, shows strong anti-inflammatory and tissue repair ability in preclinical and clinical studies, and its safety has also been partially confirmed, which is one of the potential effective measures to treat ARDS. This review will review the application of MSC in ARDS and COVID-19.