Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is an acute respiratory disease which is characterized by non-cardiogenic pulmonary oedema. It has a high mortality rate and lacks effective pharmacotherapy. As the outbreak of COVID worldwide, the mortality of ARDS has increased correspondingly, which makes it urgent to find effective targets and strategies for the treatment of ARDS. Recent clinical trials of Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors in treating COVID induced ARDS have shown a positive outcome, which makes the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) pathway a potential therapeutic target for treating ARDS. Here, we review the complex cause of ARDS, the molecular pathway of JAK/STAT involved in ARDS pathology, and the progress that has been made in strategies of targeting JAK/STAT to treat ARDS Specially, JAK/STAT signaling directly participates in the progression of ARDS or collude with other pathways to aggravate ARDS. We summarize JAK and STAT inhibitors with ARDS treatment benefits, including inhibitors in clinical trials and pre-clinical studies and natural products, and discuss the side effects of the current JAK inhibitors to reveal the future trends in designing of JAK inhibitors, which will help to develop effective treatment strategies for ARDS in the future.