Sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs) are a class of cholesterol-sensitive transcription factors that play important roles in lipid metabolism. Natural product inhibitors of SREBPs have been shown to inhibit the synthesis of free fatty acids and cholesterol, promote the burning of brown fat, and relieve insulin resistance by inhibiting different links during the synthesis, cleavage, and transport of SREBPs, thereby improving obesity, diabetes, atherosclerosis, and other metabolic diseases and disorders. There are numerous Chinese herbal medicines with verified efficacy in the treatment of metabolic diseases, including Colitis chinensis Franch. and Puemrta peduncularis Grah. for diabetes, Pueraria peduncularis Grab., Epimedium brevicornum Maxim., and Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer for osteoporosis, and Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. and Porta cocos (Schw.) Wolf. for obesity. Present-day research on the mechanisms underlying the activity of traditional Chinese medicine has indicated that certain chemical components of these traditional preparations can be used to treat metabolic diseases by inhibiting SREBPs. Progress in the research on natural product SREBP inhibitors is continuing apace, and the mechanisms of action of certain small molecules have become well established. In this study, we review recent progress in the research on natural small-molecule inhibitors of SREBPs, including fiavonoids, saponins, triterpenoids, and alkaloids, which we hope will provide a useful reference for future research and development of drugs for the treatment of metabolic diseases.