Under natural conditions, natural gas hydrates are found in marine environments. Therefore, it is necessary to study the formation of hydrates under salt water conditions and their basic properties. The effect of low⁃concentration MgSO4 with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), alkyl glycoside (APG), dodecyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (DTAC) and other surfactants on the formation of hydrates was studied. The changes of pressure and temperature with time during the formation of hydrate were measured under the conditions of 275.15 K and 6 MPa. The results show that when a certain concentration of SDS or APG is added to the solution, the hydrate formation is significantly promoted. When a certain amount of DTAC is added, substantially no hydrate is formed in the solution. Furthermore, low concentration of MgSO4 significantly enhanced the promoting effect of surfactants. It can be seen that low concentration of MgSO4 and appropriate concentration of surfactant will promote the formation of methane hydrate, and different types of surfactants have different effects on the formation of hydrate. Compared with the promotion effect of SDS and APG on hydrate formation, the promotion effect of DTAC on hydrate formation is not obvious.