High speed impact surface treatment such as shot peening (SP), laser shock peening (LSP) and surface mechanical attrition treatment (SMAT) can effectively improve the fatigue property, stress corrosion cracking performance and wear resistance of metallic materials. These surface modification techniques have been widely employed in aviation, aerospace, automobile, ship and nuclear industries. The basic principles and characteristics of SP, LSP and SMAT are introduced in this paper. The effects of SP, LSP and SMAT on surface integrity parameters of aluminum-lithium alloys, superalloys, titanium alloys and steels such as surface roughness, residual stresses in the surface layers, microhardness and microstructures in the surface layers are summarized. Finally, the research and development of high speed impact surface treatment in China are prospected.