Objectives To review the current literature surrounding chairside polishing systems for resin composites, zirconia and lithium disilicate restorations.Methods A literature search was undertaken and databases were hand-searched for the most relevant articles.Discussion The current marketplace contains a wide variety of polishing systems, each with different abrasive compounds and number of steps. Current efforts are aimed at reducing the number of steps required for polishing to improve clinical effectiveness. Reduced step systems showed some comparable results to the more traditional multi-step protocols, but the most effective results were achieved with the use of polishing paste as an additional step.Conclusions Based on the current available literature, the use of material-specific polishing systems is effective for chairside polishing of direct and indirect restorative materials. However, it is important to emphasise that, for optimum outcomes, it is essential to follow manufacturers' recommendations for each step, with particular considerations of the handpiece speed, time spent per step and use of adjunct water coolant.