<p>Nanopesticides hold great potential for sustainable agriculture owing to their ability to increase pesticide efficacy in managing insect populations, reduce environmental contamination concerns, and facilitate effective pesticide delivery. Since our knowledge about the impacts of nanopesticides on non-target organisms is still developing, there is growing concern about their use in vegetable farming systems. To identify relevant work detailing nanoparticles characteristics, exposure pathways, and ecological impacts, the review carried out an extensive search across six major databases. Data analysis revealed that the majority of evidence were collected from laboratory compared to greenhouses and/or semi-field settings. Commonly, nanopesticides containing metal nanoparticles (zinc oxide and copper oxide) and polymeric carriers (chitosan and polylactic acid) were used in most investigations. Most of the studies reported adverse effects of nanopesticides, including oxidative stress, disruption of microfauna, and reproductive decline while few studies demonstrated significantly lower toxicity. This review emphasizes the significance of standardized methodologies and advocates for subsequent research, incorporating field-based evaluations. Future research should prioritize standardized nanoparticle characterization, multi-year field trials, and multi-trophic risk assessments to enable the development of environmentally safe nanopesticide technologies.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>