Abstract: Conventional sensory evaluation of cigarette quality is highly susceptible to personnel differences and environmental fluctuations, leading to pronounced subjectivity and limited reproducibility. Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy offers rapid, non-destructive measurement with potential for on-line implementation, thereby providing a robust analytical basis for the objective quantification of sensory quality. The theoretical underpinnings and current advances in applying NIR spectroscopy to characterize cigarette sensory quality were reviewed. Centering on spectral acquisition and sample preparation, sensory data collection, spectral preprocessing and variable selection, and model development and validation, etc., the principal technical approaches reported to date were summarized and the key factors that constrained prediction accuracy and model robustness were analyzed. Building on this analysis, practical strategies to enhance model reliability are outlined, with the aim of providing reference for the standardization and intelligent deployment of sensory quality evaluation methods for cigarettes.