Abstract: Titanium carbide (TiC) and titanium nitride (TiN) exhibit a unique combination of metallic and ceramic properties, showing excellent physicochemical performance. This has garnered significant attention in various fields, including machining, electronic information, and catalysis. High-quality titanium carbide/nitride (TiC/N) powders are essential for the preparation of high-performance materials, typically requiring near-stoichiometric compositions, fine particle sizes with narrow size distributions, low oxygen impurity content, and high purity. However, the current synthesis systems face insurmountable mass transfer barriers and have a high nucleation barrier, making the production of high-quality TiC/N powders quite challenging. The main challenge in synthesizing high-quality powders via TiO₂ based solid-state reactions lies in the easy solubility of oxygen in TiC/N, along with the numerous side reactions occurring during the synthesis process. For the method involving the carbothermal and nitridation of titanium powder, the greatest difficulty arises from the formation of TiC or TiN on the surface of the titanium powder, which creates an insurmountable mass transfer barrier and releases significant heat, leading to a low stoichiometric ratio and large particle size. For the chemical vapor synthesis, the key issue is the high energy barrier for homogeneous nucleation and the complexity of the reaction pathways. Herein, we present the status of TiC and TiN powders preparation technologies and corresponding powder quality. The recent advancements in addressing above challenges by enhancing mass, improving heat transfer, and optimizing reaction pathways are discussed. The synthesis of single crystal powders, the increase of specific surface area, and the selective exposure of crystal facets are crucial research topics and important development directions for TiC/N powders in the future.