Although continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is an effective strategy to prevent invasive ventilation, failure rates are high and many babies require endotracheal intubation. Prolonged exposure to mechanical ventilation is linked with bronchopulmonary dysplasia and other morbidities. Different techniques of nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) have been proposed as an alternative to CPAP. Bilevel NIPPV and conventional mechanical ventilator-driven NIPPV are used in clinical practice. Both methods differ substantially in pressures and cycling times, potentially affecting their mechanism of action. This review focuses on noninvasive ventilation strategies, their physiologic effects, impact on clinical outcome parameters, and effects of synchronization.