The sensitivity and resolution of modern high-resolution NMR spectrometers are closely interlinked with ever-higher magnetic field strengths. The recent installation of the first 1 GHz spectrometer in Lyon impressively demonstrates the effort and profound technological development made in this area. However, the majority of applications in classical chemistry do not need this kind of resolution. In contrast, the high costs and intensive maintenance of modern highresolution NMR spectrometers with superconducting magnets prevent the employment of NMR spectroscopy in chemical research and related fields, such as quality control and chemical engineering. There are also many applications where the sample cannot be moved to or into the spectrometer. As todays state-of-the-art high-resolution NMR spectrometers are extremely heavy and fragile with respect to their environmental conditions, the analysis in such cases cannot be performed. Thus, in light of these considerations, there is a strong application-driven need for small, relatively inexpensive, easy to maintain, and portable high-resolution NMR spectrometers.The first portable NMR spectrometer was developed in 1996 by the group of Blümich at the RWTH Aachen: the NMR-MOUSE was a giant breakthrough, with a small permanent magnet used for the polarization of nuclear spins, a heavy box containing the radio-frequency (RF) amplifiers, and a laptop for control.[1] This development was followed by a number of different tabletop NMR instruments, for example, several configurations were constructed by ACT/ Magritek, the Bruker Minispec series, the Oxford Instruments MQC, and clinically oriented systems from T2 Biosystems and nanoMR.However, all the systems that are readily available today are designed to measure the relative relaxation rates of bulk samples, and allow, for example, the acquisition of 3D images or the determination of the overall fat content of food products. The spectrometers with their small, unshimmed magnets generally do not allow the resolution of different chemical shifts, which means they are of no use for classical NMR spectroscopic applications. A number of fundamental issues concerning the design of the magnets and the electronics needed for spectrum acquisition have to be overcome to achieve a portable high-resolution NMR spectrometer.The three major concerns that have to be solved to obtain a useful portable high-resolution NMR spectrometer are: 1) the design of a magnet with sufficient homogeneity for the acquisition of spectra with chemical-shift resolution, 2) the stabilization of the magnet under real-life conditions, 3) the development of acquisition techniques that allow the use of lightweight electronics.Recently, considerable progress has been made in all three areas, thus opening up the possibility of portable highresolution NMR spectrometers within the next decade.The most crucial factor for portable NMR spectroscopy is the design of a small magnet with sufficient homogeneity to allow sub-ppm resolution of the chemical shift. As heliumc...