Over the past decade, the mouse has emerged as an important model system for studying cortical function, owing to the advent of powerful tools that can record and manipulate neural activity in intact neural circuits. This advance has been particularly prominent in the visual cortex, where studies in the mouse have begun to bridge the gap between cortical structure and function, allowing investigators to determine the circuits that underlie specific visual computations. This review describes the advances in our understanding of the mouse visual cortex, including neural coding, the role of different cell types, and links between vision and behavior, and discusses how recent findings and new approaches can guide future studies.