Abstract Effectively controlling and reducing the energy consumption of buildings is the global focus. A considerable variety of research on building energy saving (BES) had been raised in the past. However, most of the previous reviews focus on a single topic within the area, and systematic review and objective analysis are lacking. This study comprehensively reviews 2569 papers on BES published between 1974 and 2020 through bibliometrics, network mapping analysis and in-depth content analysis to fill this research gap. This paper discusses the development evolution and research trends in the field based on the analysis results, and the following three major research themes are identified and discussed: (1) influence factors of building energy consumption (BEC), (2) implementation of BES and (3) barriers and drivers of BES. Lastly, the current study indicates the possible potential research direction in the future; for example, intelligent integration of energy management and control system, quantitative and qualitative analyses of the interaction of BESM and comprehensive summary and quantitative analysis of the driving and hindering factors of BES. The contribution of this study is that it can help scholars and practitioners to have a comprehensive cognition of the research status and trends in the field of BES.