Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) suffers from four-electron transfer, sluggish kinetics and high energy requirements, limiting the development of new energy technologies such as hydrogen production from water electrolysis. In recent years, non-noble metal composite catalysts have attracted increasing attention due to their advantages of excellent catalytic activity and cost compared with noble metal-based catalysts. This review summarizes the latest progress in this field. Firstly, the OER mechanism and the evaluation methods of catalytic performance are briefly introduced. Then the non-noble metal/nitrogen-doped carbon composites are further classified into metal/nitrogen-doped carbon composites, metal single atom/nitrogen-doped carbon composites, alloy/nitrogen-doped carbon composites, and metal oxide/nitrogen-doped carbon composites. The research progress of the electrocatalysts is summarized and analyzed based on the synthesis method and catalytic activity, aiming to explore the role of nitrogen-doped carbon materials in catalyst structure and catalyst performance. Finally, perspectives are given out for the current problems and future directions of non-noble metal/nitrogen-doped carbon composites.