<p>The hydrogenation of carbon dioxide (CO₂) to ethanol (EtOH) represents a promising strategy for carbon resource utilization. This progress advances the fields of green chemistry and renewable energy technologies. However, its practical implementation remains hindered by challenges in catalyst development, reaction mechanism elucidation, and industrial scalability. The reaction pathway for CO₂ hydrogenation to EtOH is intricate, involving C-O bond activation and C-C coupling, with its thermodynamic and kinetic properties strongly influenced by temperature, pressure, and catalyst structure. Briefly, CO₂ conversion rate and EtOH selectivity are significantly enhanced by optimizing catalyst active sites, incorporating promoters and selecting appropriate supports. In recent years, multifunctional catalysts have emerged as research hotspots due to their facile structural design and superior catalytic performance. Here, it reviews the reaction mechanisms, catalyst design principles, and optimization strategies for CO₂ hydrogenation to EtOH in the continuous-flow fixed-bed reactor with a particular emphasis on the roles of noble metals (<i>e.g.</i>, Rh) and transition metals (e.g., Co, Cu) in this reaction. Future investigations should focus on deepening the mechanistic understanding of the reaction, developing efficient and stable catalysts, and optimizing the reaction conditions to enable the industrial-scale application of CO₂ hydrogenation to EtOH in the continuous-flow fixed-bed reactor, thereby advancing green chemistry and sustainable development.</p>