Aspirin is integral in the primary and secondary prevention of coronary artery disease and acute coronary syndrome. Given the high clinical importance of aspirin in the management of coronary artery disease, much attention has been directed towards the concept of “aspirin resistance.” Unfortunately, the term aspirin resistance is ill‐defined in the literature, leading to a large variance in the reported prevalence of this phenomenon. In this review, the current understanding of aspirin resistance is discussed. Commonly used functional and diagnostic tests of platelet function, including their strengths and weakness, are reviewed. We next discuss several proposed mechanisms of aspirin resistance and special high‐risk groups at risk for aspirin treatment failure. We then discuss optimal dosing and diagnostic strategies for those populations at risk for aspirin resistance with a focus on tailored aspirin therapy for high‐risk groups. Finally, future topics of interest in the field of aspirin resistance are considered. Clin. Cardiol. 2012 doi: 10.1002/clc.22031Jonathan Grinstein has no funding, financial relationships, or conflicts of interest to disclose. Christopher P. Cannon receives research grants/support from the following companies: Accumetrics, AstraZeneca, Essentialis, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Regeneron, Sanofi, and Takeda. He is also on the advisory board (but funds donated to charity) for Alnylam, Bristol‐Myers Squibb, and Pfizer. He is a Clinical Advisor, equity in Automedics Medical Systems.