Ceramics are widely used as dental restorative materials because of their superior wear resistance, chemical stability, biocompatibility, and aesthetic features. In this paper, the chemical compositions, microstructures and mechanical properties of dental ceramics were introduced, based on the wear mechanisms of typical dental ceramics and their abrasiveness with opposing human teeth, the main progress concerning the tribological performance optimization of dental ceramics were summarized, and it was pointed out that the mismatch of tribological properties between ceramics and human teeth seriously restricts the clinical application of dental ceramics. Then the in vitro test methods of tribological properties of dental ceramic materials are analyzed and summarized from the aspects of laboratory test medium,friction pair,load,displacement and cycle times. Finally, the future development trends of dental ceramics were discussed from the perspective of bionic tribology. It was pointed out that bionic design of ceramic matrix composites is a promising strategy for overcoming the mismatch of tribological property between dental ceramic restorations and human teeth.