Three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction techniques have been used to obtain the 3D representations of objects in civil engineering in the form of point cloud models, mesh models and geometric models more often than ever, among which, point cloud models are the basis. In order to clarify the status quo of the research and application of the techniques in civil engineering, literature retrieval is implemented by using major literature databases in the world and the result is summarized by analyzing the abstracts or the full papers when required. First, the research methodology is introduced, and the framework of 3D reconstruction techniques is established. Second, 3D reconstruction techniques for generating point clouds and processing point clouds along with the corresponding algorithms and methods are reviewed respectively. Third, their applications in reconstructing and managing construction sites and reconstructing pipelines of Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) systems, are presented as typical examples, and the achievements are highlighted. Finally, the challenges are discussed and the key research directions to be addressed in the future are proposed. This paper contributes to the knowledge body of 3D reconstruction in two aspects, i.e. summarizing systematically the up-to-date achievements and challenges for the applications of 3D reconstruction techniques in civil engineering, and proposing key future research directions to be addressed in the field.