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Abstract. A virtual laboratory is an approach that has been widely used in biology learning but remains a challenge for countries that are still experiencing obstacles in technology. Biology has some abstract concepts which are difficult to be understood by simple explanation, or even difficult to be practiced in a traditional laboratory. The challenges of virtual labs in the biology needs to be analyzed to capture what the characteristic of biology topics which are generally designed with virtual labs and what the impact of virtual labs to students conceptual understanding and their laboratory skills. To track those queries, the systematic review was carried out on research articles published in academical journals within 2010 to 2018. A total of 23 empirical articles were analyzed. Cell or molecular biology and introduction biology are the most widely topics used in the virtual labs. While, understanding the biological concepts is the most studied variable, and virtual labs worked significantly on it. Some studies examined students affective and skills, and the virtual labs are also effective. However, only a few studies examine the learning process. Most biology virtual labs are developed by Adobe Flash Player application with 3D animation. This article suggests further research to develop a biology virtual lab that is more inquiry-based, and measures students understanding of abstract concepts, and science process skills that have not been widely studied.