Zoning is an effective tool for managing nature reserve areas; therefore a scientific and practical zoning method is critical for dealing with conflicts of nature reserve. Reasonable zoning can make a sustainable development of nature reserve areas by protecting natural resources, and meanwhile develop the social economy. In this paper, different zoning methods were analyzed based their origin, connotation, mechanism, application and other aspects. Moreover, the pros and cons of the various zoning methods among the current nature reserves were summarized. Finally, problems existed in zoning methods were discussed and the putative solving strategies were proposed.