Mitigating anthropogenic CO2 emissions has been a subject of incredible urgency in recent years. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has emerged as a promising means of cutting emissions, with post-combustion capture and direct air capture (DAC) both gaining traction as methods of offsetting emissions from point sources and the ambient atmosphere. Each of these carbon capture methods rely on absorbent or adsorbent materials to function, whose properties can vastly impact capture performance. In this work, 14 materials are analyzed, with qualitative descriptions and performance data of each material based on existing review papers and representative case studies being presented. The review highlights limitations in the field in standardizing the reporting of experimental data, complicating the direct comparison of different materials’ efficacies. While no single CCS technology is found to be unequivocally superior, the promising performances of certain materials in earlier stages of development emphasize the importance of investing further in emerging post-combustion capture materials. This study concludes that CCS technologies are a necessary tool in ultimately reaching net zero emissions due to their role in neutralizing sectors resistant to decarbonization, but they should not be relied upon to substitute the transition to renewable energy, as the prevention of emissions should take priority over the abatement of emissions.