Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection has long been a critical public health challenge in China. National surveys revealed a prevalence of approximate 10% for chronic HBV infection in general population. HBV has been the leading cause of chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver cancers in Chinese population and a common pathogen of acute viral hepatitis. Meanwhile, the epidemic provided important opportunities to research the natural history, public health impact, and therapeutic and preventive interventions for HBV in China. In this review, we summarized the selected key epidemiological studies since 1970s regarding HBV infection and its associated liver diseases in China, and provided considerations for future research, prevention and treatment of HBV.