Stress corrosion cracking (SCC), often occurring in industries, is a failure mode with the feature of brittle cleavage at low stress levels. Meanwhile, the SCC mechanism is always a tough and focused scientific issue during about one hundred years. Based on recent research progress, SCC mechanism models specific in ductile solids are reviewed in this paper. Macroscopically, the three factors on SCC consist of susceptible materials, specific environment and stress as usual. The failure criterion of SCC accords with the Griffith’s theory. Microscopically, this work primarily analyzes models, suitability and limit of SCC mechanisms proposed in the past several decades. In principle, the microscopic SCC mechanisms are composed of the slip dissolution model, the selective dissolution model, the film induced cleavage model, the corrosion enhanced plasticity model and the uniformed environment assisted cracking model. It is obvious that the physical and chemical SCC essence is controversial until now. However, from anodic dissolution to film rupture, from dislocation slipping to brittle cleavage and from the hydrogen-enhanced effect to the synergistic effects of electronegative particles, the development of the models gradually tents to atomic scales. As a consequence, the SCC models are fairly valuable in the aspects of theory and application. Besides, the prospects of advanced SCC science and application are also done at the final.