Higher-order Bessel - Gauss beams shows “diffraction-free” characteristics under certain conditions.It is a kind of hollow beam that has broad application prospect.In this paper,we summarize and classify the generation methods.They can be divided into two categories-active way and passive way.The present generation methods-Resonator method，Geometrical optics method，Optical holographic method，computer generated hologram，Nonlinear optical method are described and analyzed.Finally we introduce the advantages and disadvantages of each method.