The spread and research of Marx's theory of social formation in China has gone roughly through such stages as the introduction of“the theory of five formations”, the establishment of “the theory of five formations”, and the strong impact of “the theory of three formations” on “the theory of five formations”, the “coexistence of the theory of three formations” and “the theory of five formations”. The course of Chinese scholars' study of “Marx's social formation theory” is closely related to the translation, publication and dissemination of Marx, Engels and Stalin's relevant works in China. The claim that “the theory of five formations” in China originated from Stalin cannot be established. Reviewing and reconsidering the spread and research history of Marx's social formation theory in China for more than 100 years will help us to make clear the following directions for our efforts: we should conduct a more detailed examination of such core concepts as “social formation”, “social formation of economy” and “social form”; based on Das Kapital and its manuscript, grasp the theoretical logic of Marx's investigation of social formations; seriously refute “the ideological trend of non-social formation” in academic research; apply Marx's theory of social formation to analyze the development stage of contemporary capitalism and contemporary China.