This resource outlines that managing the COVID-19 pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has relied on personal protective equipment (PPE). Face masks, as a representative example of PPE, have made a particularly significant contribution. However, most used face masks are made of materials lacking inactivation properties against SARS-CoV-2 or multidrug-resistant bacteria. Therefore, symptomatic, and asymptomatic individuals wearing masks can still infect others due to viable microbial loads escaping from the masks.Moreover, microbial contact transmission can occur by touching the mask, and the discarded masks are an increasing source of contaminated biological waste and a serious environmental threat. For this reason, many researchers have developed face masks made of advanced materials with intrinsic antimicrobial, self-cleaning, reusable, and/or biodegradable properties during the current pandemic, thereby providing extra protection against pathogens in a sustainable manner. To overview this segment of the remarkable efforts against COVID-19, this review describes the different types of commercialized face masks, their main fabrication methods and treatments, and the progress achieved in face mask development.