In response to COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutions implemented distance education. Online learning was adopted as the mode of delivery in instruction. With this sudden change, there were learning inequalities and barriers that occurred that affected the quality of education students received. This study is a literature review of the experiences of higher education institutions in implementing distance education through online learning during COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study is to make an overview of the experiences of universities and colleges during the pandemic. Twenty-three journal articles from the Education Resources Information Center database with specific key ERIC fields in the search work were utilized and subjected to analysis. The study discussed the different challenges and issues in the implementation of distance education. Also, the struggles of students, faculty, and staff were presented.