Compact city policy applications are expanding rapidly worldwide, and so is research on the topic. This review sampled 92 publications from the last 5 years mentioning this model in their titles. A theme-centric approach was used to analyze them in order to shed light on three central questions: how do recent contributions understand and operationalize the composition of compact cities? How do they enhance existing knowledge about the model's externalities and impacts on sustainability objectives? And finally, what lessons can be learned regarding strategies of implementation and how they map onto persistent challenges and evolving policy instruments?