Due to low density, high specific strength, strong corrosion resistance, etc., titanium alloy has wide application prospect in various fields such as aerospace, marine engineering, etc. However, the low hardness and poor wear resistance of titanium alloy severely restrict its service life under friction conditions. Laser cladding technology has the advantages of high production efficiency, narrow heat-affected zone, high bonding strength and dense microstructure and now is increasingly applied in surface modification and cladding repair of titanium alloy components. Titanium carbide with high hardness and modulus is generally selected as the reinforcement phase of laser cladding titanium-based composite coating to improve wear resistance, which is due to the similar thermal physical parameters of titanium carbide and titanium alloy substrate. The characteristics of crystal structure, growth morphology and performance of titanium carbide were introduced firstly. Then, the titanium carbide reinforced titanium-based material system was overviewed and the influences of the process parameters on the forming quality, macroscopic morphology and microstructure of the cladding layer were summarized. After that, the microstructure characteristics of titanium carbide reinforced titanium-based laser cladding layer were discussed from the distribution, quantity, size and phase structure of titanium c titanium carbide reinforcing phase and the strengthening mechanism was also revealed. The relationship between the microstructure characteristics and wear resistance of titanium carbide reinforced titanium-based laser cladding layer was discussed. Finally the existing problems and future development of laser cladding titanium carbide reinforced titanium-based composite coating were put forward.