In the context of limited energy resources in the World energy resources, improving energy utilization and finding new energy has always been the goal of the scientific community. In addition, new opportunities brought by the production of new quality productive forces have made it a new pursuit for scientists to find a small energy source that can provide disorderly dispersion for micro/nano electromechanical systems and self-driving devices. Solid–liquid triboelectric nanogenerator (SL-TENG) is based on the contact electrocution (CE) and electrostatic induction (EI). It has attracted much attention with its benefits such as exquisite structure, convenient manufacturing, low cost and unparalleled advantages in collecting droplet energy. Since its discovery, it has gradually become a new research direction for TENG. This paper first elaborates on the electrification mechanism of SL-TENG and introduces its main working modes. Subsequently, a review is focused on the influencing factors and latest research of SL-TENG. Then, the commonly used manufacturing methods to improve the performance of frictional power generation were introduced, and the practical applications of SL-TENG were summarized and analyzed, as well as the relevant technological progress and research directions. Finally, the significance and challenges of SL-TENG are summarized, and its future development trend is prospected.