Soil acidification has become a major limiting factor of soil quality and tobacco production in China, but there are little of systematic studies to summarize the mechanisms and control techniques of soil acidification in tobacco fields, which greatly limits the improvement of soil acidification and sustainable production of tobacco in China. This review summarizes the research progresses in acidification mechanisms of tobacco soils and its control in recent years. The quantitative analysis of the contribution of different acidogenic factors to soil acidification reveals that the imbalance of base cations input and output (output>>input) is the main cause of soil acidification in tobacco fields. Furthermore, soil acidification is accelerated by the excessive nitrogen fertilization, unbalanced nutrient management and acid deposition. The management strategies are proposed with the application of lime and alkaline amendments as the most common and effective measures, meanwhile, the protection and restoration of soil microenvironment are also important in addition to the improvement of acidified soils, and the application of organic fertilizers such as bio-organic fertilizers and farmyard manures can protect and restore soil microenvironment. "Alkalinity" is proposed as a lever to determine the applied amount of amendments in order to achieve acid-base balance in soils. Meanwhile, the degree of soil acidity should be considered in different regions in order to achieve "accurate reducing acidity", which can not only effectively solve the problem of soil acidification, but also save on amendments and improve economic efficiency.