Glasses doped with quantum dots (QDs) are intensively investigated in recent years due to the tunable absorption and photoluminescence in a wide wavelength range induced by the quantum confinement effects. Since lead chalcogenide semiconductors have narrow energy bandgaps and large Borh radius, the QDs made of lead chalcogenide compounds have widespread technological applications in optoelectronics. The QD-doped glasses with good chemical and thermal stability offer a possibility to make the all-solid and compact devices. To achieve the desirable optical properties, recent efforts are devoted to tune the bandgap of QDs and improve the quantum efficiency. This review summarized recent research progress on the tuning methods of optical properties of PbS and PbSe QDs in glasses. In addition, the problems and future research directions of IV-VI QDs-doped glasses for applications were also emphasized.