Research progress and features of various end-effectors for fruit-vegetable harvesting are reviewed. It is pointed out that the conflict between the universal applicability of the end-effectors for fruit-vegetable harvesting and system cost as well as application cost is a main factor restricting the future development and application of fruit-vegetable harvesting robot in China. The underactuated multi-fingered hand is proposed as the end-effector for fruit-vegetable harvesting, and then a detailed review of the research progress of underactuated multi-fingered hand is presented. The feasibility of using the underactuated multi-fingered hand in fruit-vegetable harvesting is illustrated in terms of mechanism features, grasping modes and comprehensive costs.