It is used to bear the combined shaft and radial load mainly axial load, but the radial load shall not exceed 55% of the axial load. Compared with other thrust roller bearings, this kind of bearing has a lower friction factor, higher rotation speed, and has self-aligning performance.

Thrust roller bearings and thrust tapered roller bearings are suitable for low-speed applications. The speed of thrust tapered roller bearings is slightly higher than that of thrust cylindrical roller bearings. Thrust cylindrical roller bearings are separate bearings that can only withstand one-way axial load and slight impact. They can limit the axial displacement of the shaft (or housing) in one direction, so they can be used for one-way axial positioning. But its load-bearing capacity is much greater than that of thrust ball bearings. When the roller rolls, due to the different linear speeds at both ends of the roller, the roller inevitably slides on the ring raceway. Therefore, the limit speed of this type of bearing is lower than that of thrust ball bearings, and it is usually only suitable for low-speed operation occasions.