Abstract In the last decade, retrofitting strategies have been reviewed to improve energy efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of existing buildings [1]. A modernization strategy consists of an architectural design based on bioclimatic characteristics. The exploitation of climatic indicators and the use of passive strategies are among the central principles of this design approach [2]. The main objective of this study is to provide an extensive review of the different building envelopes with the adoption of high-performance materials or systems to improve human thermal comfort.