Underwater gliders and wave gliders are widely used in oceanographic exploration missions because of their characteristics of low energy consumption,long endurance,and good maneuverability. A single glider cannot meet the needs of diversity and complexity of marine missions. With the help of underwater acoustic communication technology,the advantages of underwater gliders and wave gliders can be combined toform a formation structure of heterogeneous gliders,establish a trans-medium information transmission link,and expand the range and monitoring ability of gliders. In this paper,the research status,common algorithms and the advantages and disadvantages of underwater acoustic communication technology are briefly introduced. The research and application status of underwater acoustic communication technology for heterogeneous gliders are reviewed. The difficulties and future research trends of underwater acoustic communication technology for heterogeneous gliders are discussed. This paper is of great value to the research and application of underwater acoustic communication and networking for heterogeneous gliders.