The introduction of vaccines has greatly reduced the rates of morbidity and mortality caused by infectious diseases, and has a transformational effect on global human health. Here, we systematically review the history and development of vaccines, and analyze the advantages and drawbacks of different types of vaccines. Moreover, we detail a broadly protective vaccine type, which we dub precision-designed vaccine. Precision-designed vaccine is a high-throughput and reverse genetics based recombinant vaccine, which is precisely designed on a comprehensive functional characterization of a pathogen genome. Precision medicine, which takes into account individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle, leads to a new revolution in healthcare system. In like manner, the emerging precision-designed vaccine, targetting specific genes, proteins and pathways of pathogens or abnormal cells, sheds new light on the design of vaccines and can help usher in a new era of vaccinology.