Sirtuins are evolutionarily conserved protein, serving as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-dependent deacetylases or adenosine diphosphate-ribosyltransferases. The mammalian sirtuins family, including SIRT1~ 7, is involved in many biological processes such as cell survival, proliferation, senescence, stress response, genome stability and metabolism. Evidence accumulated over the past two decades has indicated that sirtuins not only serve as important energy status sensors but also protect cells against metabolic stresses. In this review, we summarize the background of glucose and lipid metabolism concerning sirtuins and discuss the functions of sirtuins in glucose and lipid metabolism. We also seek to highlight the biological roles of certain sirtuins members in cancer metabolism.