Abstract: Infrared thermography is widely used to detect material surface and sub-surface defects owing to its non-contact nature, high efficiency, and low cost. This study first summarizes the main failure modes of anti-corrosion coatings for marine equipment. The research status and application of infrared thermography in the qualitative identification and quantitative characterization of surface cracks and interfacial defects in marine anti-corrosion coatings are then discussed. The main difficulties in current applications are the detection of small cracks and the acquisition of high-resolution infrared images. The future development directions are also proposed, including multi-modalization, intelligence, stabilization, and remote monitoring automation.