Purpose of review <p>The impact of hypoalbuminemia on the pharmacokinetics and clinical outcomes for patients receiving antimicrobial therapy remains a common question for clinicians. This review seeks to summarize and analyze recently published data to provide insight into potential opportunities for optimization of future randomized controlled trials.</p> Recent findings <p>Recent retrospective and observational studies largely focus on the impact of hypoalbuminemia on ceftriaxone and ertapenem use. Available data indicate that patients with hypoalbuminemia may have worse clinical outcomes than normoalbuminemic counterparts.</p> Summary <p>The impact of hypoalbuminemia on clinical outcomes in patients receiving antimicrobials is mixed. No clear consensus has been achieved regarding optimization of ceftriaxone or ertapenem therapy for patients with hypoalbuminemia. Further research evaluating this patient population would benefit from larger sample sizes, inclusion of indication/culture data, and alternative dosing recommendations.</p>