Abstract: The determination and characterization of solid drug form polymorphisms plays an important role in drug quality control, selection of the production process and clinical efficacy evaluation. Vibrational spectroscopy is a powerful method for the characterization of drug polymorphisms. In this paper we review recent research and application advances in the polymorphic characterization of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and drug cocrystals/salts by using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy to elucidate the characteristics of APIs and drug complexes. This may provide theoretical support for structural analysis during the development process for drugs.