Alkaloids are a class of natural compounds with good pharmacological properties.In the field of separation science and technology,alkaloid separation has always been a hot and difficult problem.In recent years,with the development of high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) materials and separation methods,great progresses in alkaloid analysis and preparation have been achieved.In this article,the theoretical development and technological advances with respect to peak tailing problems of basic compounds are summarized,and the applications of HPLC in natural alkaloid analysis and preparation are discussed.The further development of HPLC separation on alkaloids is also looked forward.