Exergy is naturally related to the concept of quality of energy. Therefore, exergy analysis has been widely applied in parallel with energy analysis in order to find the most rational use of energy. Within the built environment a wide margin for exergy saving may be found. Actually, buildings require mostly low quality energy for thermal uses at low temperatures and nowadays their energy demand is mainly satisfied with high quality sources. Exergy analysis of renewable energy-based climatisation systems may be considered an emerging field, where different and often contrasting approaches are followed. Then, in this paper a comprehensive and critical view on the most recent studies on this topic is presented. Special attention is paid to the methodological aspects specifically related to climatisation systems and renewables, and to the comparison of the results. Main renewable energy-based heating and cooling systems are considered in detail. Finally, conclusions regarding the state of the art and possible trends on this field are derived, with the aim to highlight future research issues and promote further developments of this method. Furthermore, conclusions regarding the usability of the exergy method as a tool to promote a more efficient use of available energy sources are also derived. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.