CO 2 molecular diffusion in subsurface porous media is one of the key mechanisms in high-pressure−high-temperature CO 2 geosequestration and CO 2 -based enhanced oil recovery projects. The mass transfer rate of injected supercritical CO 2 and its dissolution in reservoir fluids are mainly described by the gas diffusion coefficient. Over the past decades, numerous efforts have been made to investigate the CO 2 molecular diffusion process in both hydrocarbon reservoirs and saline aquifers. However, various experimental methods and mathematical models with simplified assumptions were used to determine the CO 2 diffusivity, which sometimes led to inaccurate or contradicting results. Hence, it is essential to critically review and compare the CO 2 -diffusion-related literature for better application in geoscience, chemical, and petroleum engineering fields. In this review, we critically review the physics of CO 2 diffusion in porous and nanoporous media, including the diffusion theory, factors affecting the CO 2 diffusion coefficient in hydrocarbon reservoirs and saline aquifers, analysis of laboratory measurement methods, their advantages and disadvantages and limitations, and also evaluation of previously developed mathematical models and their uncertainties and empirical correlations, in detail. Additionally, we briefly discuss CO 2 dispersion in porous media from various aspects. Finally, potential research areas related to CO 2 diffusion in porous media are proposed.