Presence and proliferation of microorganisms in textiles while they are used or stored may cause negative effects on fabrics and health of people who use them. Such situation can be fought by employing anti-microbial agents to functionalize textiles. Current consumers want their garments to offer tested and durable antimicrobial benefits. This article includes a bibliographic revision of antimicrobial compounds used to functionalize different textiles, which avoid growth and development of microorganisms; for this reason, there are different types of antimicrobial agents such as the ones derived from natural organic compounds, synthetic organic compounds or inorganic compounds. Besides, characterization methods of the antimicrobial activity on textiles were reviewed and evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively according to AATCC, ASTM, and JIS standards.