The liver is an important organ of the body, which has many functions, such as metabolism and detoxification. Due to the rapid change of lifestyle and the improvement of public health, the incidence rate of non-communicable diseases has increased significantly, which fundamentally changed the disease characteristics in most parts of the world. At present, the global prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is about 25%. Moreover, about 59.10% of NAFLD patients progress to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) within 5 years, and about 41% of NASH patients progress to fibrosis. NAFLD has become one of the most important liver diseases in the world and may become the main cause of end-stage liver disease in the next few decades. In addition, NAFLD and related cirrhosis will bring huge economic burden to patients, health care system and society. Since there are currently no medications available that have been approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA), NAFLD is still treated mainly through lifestyle changes such as exercise and diet. Oxidative stress and inflammation are the most important pathological processes in the occurrence and development of liver diseases. Nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a key regulator of the body's antioxidant stress system, with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and other functions. Many studies have shown that Nrf2 pathway significantly affects the progression of liver diseases. In this review, we aimed to summarize the regulatory role of the Kelch-like ECH-associating protein 1 (Keap1)-Nrf2-antioxidant response element (ARE) signaling pathway in the pathogenesis of NAFLD, and to reveal the potential of Nrf2 as a therapeutic target for NAFLD.