The research progress of urban raw water system scheduling was reviewed both domestically and internationally from three aspects, including theoretical research, software development and engineering practice. The differences between raw water scheduling and water resource allocation as well as reservoir group scheduling were discussed, the advantages and disadvantages of simulation scheduling and optimization scheduling were analyzed, and the development of intelligent scheduling technologies and corresponding application in raw water companies were summarized. The characteristics of simulation software and decision support systems in the field of raw water scheduling were introduced and the application approach of decision support system in intelligent scheduling software development was analyzed. Through analyzing engineering cases of urban raw water systems of various scales domestically and internationally, the practical value of raw water scheduling was analyzed in the aspects of rational use of water resources, improving water supply efficiency and responding to emergencies. It is pointed out that future research directions include strengthening theoretical research on intelligent scheduling of urban raw water systems, establishing urban raw water intelligent scheduling systems with wide applicability and strong operability, improving the prediction accuracy and timeliness of scheduling targets for urban raw water systems, establishing a scientific library of emergency scheduling plans for urban raw water systems, and forming an evaluation system for urban raw water system scheduling that meets ecological and development needs.