The article reviews strategies for identifying protective mycobacterial antigens and recent advancements in preclinical models for evaluating the efficacy of tuberculosis (TB) vaccine candidates. Tuberculosis remains a significant global health concern, with *Mycobacterium tuberculosis* being the leading infectious agent responsible for deaths. The BCG vaccine, while widely used, has variable efficacy against adult pulmonary TB. Efforts to develop new TB vaccines have been ongoing, but conventional preclinical animal models have limitations in fully recapitulating human responses. The article outlines various approaches to identify protective antigens, including genome-wide screening and in silico tools, and highlights recent advancements in preclinical evaluation models. Key antigens identified include secreted proteins like ESAT-6 and CFP-10, latency antigens such as HspX and Rv2660c, and resuscitation-promoting factors like RpfB. Multi-antigenic vectored vaccines combining latency antigens with early secreted antigens have shown strong potential in preclinical studies. The article also discusses the use of computational vaccinology, genome-wide gene expression studies, and unbiased antigen discovery approaches to identify new vaccine candidates. Despite these advancements, challenges remain in developing a safe and effective TB vaccine that surpasses the efficacy of BCG.The article reviews strategies for identifying protective mycobacterial antigens and recent advancements in preclinical models for evaluating the efficacy of tuberculosis (TB) vaccine candidates. Tuberculosis remains a significant global health concern, with *Mycobacterium tuberculosis* being the leading infectious agent responsible for deaths. The BCG vaccine, while widely used, has variable efficacy against adult pulmonary TB. Efforts to develop new TB vaccines have been ongoing, but conventional preclinical animal models have limitations in fully recapitulating human responses. The article outlines various approaches to identify protective antigens, including genome-wide screening and in silico tools, and highlights recent advancements in preclinical evaluation models. Key antigens identified include secreted proteins like ESAT-6 and CFP-10, latency antigens such as HspX and Rv2660c, and resuscitation-promoting factors like RpfB. Multi-antigenic vectored vaccines combining latency antigens with early secreted antigens have shown strong potential in preclinical studies. The article also discusses the use of computational vaccinology, genome-wide gene expression studies, and unbiased antigen discovery approaches to identify new vaccine candidates. Despite these advancements, challenges remain in developing a safe and effective TB vaccine that surpasses the efficacy of BCG.