Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative disease with a high incidence rate among middle-aged and elderly people. It can cause joint pain, deformity, and functional impairment, leading to a heavy burden on patients and their families. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) is a recently discovered ligand-dependent transcriptional regulatory factor that can regulate fat and carbohydrate metabolism, inflammation, and immune processes. Research has shown that the PPARγ gene plays an important role in OA cartilage degeneration, synovitis inflammation, and adipose lesions, and can affect OA progression through signaling pathways such as the AMP-activated protein kinase, Wnt, and sirtuin 1 pathways. This review focuses on the role and mechanism of the PPARγ gene in OA, in relation to jointrelated tissues and key signaling pathways.