Virtual hearing technology can reproduce the same hearing effect as real sound images, and may even optimize listening experiences. It involves psychoacoustics, signal measurement, computational simulation and other aspects. It has been widely applied in the fields of virtual reality, communication and navigation, hearing aids and psychological rehabilitation, and has attracted wide attention from researchers. An important application of this technology is the construction of a virtual auditory space, which requires the acquisition of personalized head-related transfer functions. Several methods for obtaining personalized head-related transfer functions have been proposed. To summarize and discuss these methods, we classify them into three categories: acoustic measurement, numerical calculation and approximate estimation based on human characteristics. Research progresses and important achievements within each category were then investigated. We analyzed advantages and disadvantages of various methods from the perspective of practical application, and then looked forward to new trends in technology development in the future.