This review provides a comprehensive overview of advancements in soft robotics, focusing on actuation methods, materials, and applications. Soft robots, composed of flexible materials with moduli similar to biological tissues, offer advantages such as safe human-robot interaction, adaptability, and the ability to perform tasks in complex environments. The review discusses various actuation methods, including humidity, temperature, pH, electricity, magnetism, light, and hybrid drives, highlighting their mechanisms, applications, and challenges. Materials such as hydrogels, shape-memory materials (SMP, SMPC, SMAs, SMH), and flexible materials like PDMS, elastomers, and fibers are analyzed for their properties and roles in soft robotics. Applications span biomedical devices, grippers, camouflage, and soft electronics. The review identifies technical challenges, such as the need for flexible and energy-efficient actuators, and emphasizes the importance of material selection and actuation method optimization for practical applications. It concludes that soft robotics hold great potential for improving human life through their adaptability and versatility in diverse environments.This review provides a comprehensive overview of advancements in soft robotics, focusing on actuation methods, materials, and applications. Soft robots, composed of flexible materials with moduli similar to biological tissues, offer advantages such as safe human-robot interaction, adaptability, and the ability to perform tasks in complex environments. The review discusses various actuation methods, including humidity, temperature, pH, electricity, magnetism, light, and hybrid drives, highlighting their mechanisms, applications, and challenges. Materials such as hydrogels, shape-memory materials (SMP, SMPC, SMAs, SMH), and flexible materials like PDMS, elastomers, and fibers are analyzed for their properties and roles in soft robotics. Applications span biomedical devices, grippers, camouflage, and soft electronics. The review identifies technical challenges, such as the need for flexible and energy-efficient actuators, and emphasizes the importance of material selection and actuation method optimization for practical applications. It concludes that soft robotics hold great potential for improving human life through their adaptability and versatility in diverse environments.