Mycotoxins are toxic metabolites produced by molds that can contaminate food and beverages, posing serious health risks due to their acute and chronic toxicity. Current analytical methods are sensitive enough for detection and quantification, but their application to real samples is challenging due to matrix complexity, requiring clean-up and preconcentration steps. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthetic materials with artificial binding sites that selectively recognize target molecules, making them increasingly used in solid-phase extraction methods for mycotoxin analysis. This review discusses the state-of-the-art of MIPs as solid-phase extraction materials in mycotoxin contamination analysis, focusing on the use of mimic molecules in their synthesis, application to real food samples, and development of advanced extraction methods involving molecular imprinting technology. MIPs offer advantages over traditional methods, such as high selectivity, efficiency, and compatibility with various sample matrices. Key challenges in mycotoxin imprinting include the difficulty in using mycotoxins as templates due to their toxicity and the need for safe, affordable mimic templates. Despite these challenges, MIPs have shown promising results in various applications, including solid-phase extraction, magnetic solid-phase extraction, stir bar sorptive extraction, and dispersive solid-phase microextraction. These methods have demonstrated high selectivity, sensitivity, and efficiency in detecting mycotoxins in complex matrices. The review highlights the development of MIPs for various mycotoxins, including ochratoxin A, sterigmatocystin, zearalenone, and patulin, using different synthesis approaches such as mimic templates, fragmental templates, and solid-phase polymer synthesis. These MIPs have been successfully applied in the analysis of food samples, showing comparable or better performance than traditional methods. In conclusion, molecular imprinting technology has advanced significantly in the last fifteen years, offering efficient and selective sorbents for the clean-up and preconcentration of mycotoxins in complex samples. The use of mimic templates has largely resolved the challenge of directly using mycotoxins as templates, making MIPs a viable alternative to traditional solid-phase extraction materials. Despite the success of immunoaffinity extraction, MIPs continue to show promise in mycotoxin analysis due to their high selectivity, efficiency, and compatibility with various sample matrices.Mycotoxins are toxic metabolites produced by molds that can contaminate food and beverages, posing serious health risks due to their acute and chronic toxicity. Current analytical methods are sensitive enough for detection and quantification, but their application to real samples is challenging due to matrix complexity, requiring clean-up and preconcentration steps. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthetic materials with artificial binding sites that selectively recognize target molecules, making them increasingly used in solid-phase extraction methods for mycotoxin analysis. This review discusses the state-of-the-art of MIPs as solid-phase extraction materials in mycotoxin contamination analysis, focusing on the use of mimic molecules in their synthesis, application to real food samples, and development of advanced extraction methods involving molecular imprinting technology. MIPs offer advantages over traditional methods, such as high selectivity, efficiency, and compatibility with various sample matrices. Key challenges in mycotoxin imprinting include the difficulty in using mycotoxins as templates due to their toxicity and the need for safe, affordable mimic templates. Despite these challenges, MIPs have shown promising results in various applications, including solid-phase extraction, magnetic solid-phase extraction, stir bar sorptive extraction, and dispersive solid-phase microextraction. These methods have demonstrated high selectivity, sensitivity, and efficiency in detecting mycotoxins in complex matrices. The review highlights the development of MIPs for various mycotoxins, including ochratoxin A, sterigmatocystin, zearalenone, and patulin, using different synthesis approaches such as mimic templates, fragmental templates, and solid-phase polymer synthesis. These MIPs have been successfully applied in the analysis of food samples, showing comparable or better performance than traditional methods. In conclusion, molecular imprinting technology has advanced significantly in the last fifteen years, offering efficient and selective sorbents for the clean-up and preconcentration of mycotoxins in complex samples. The use of mimic templates has largely resolved the challenge of directly using mycotoxins as templates, making MIPs a viable alternative to traditional solid-phase extraction materials. Despite the success of immunoaffinity extraction, MIPs continue to show promise in mycotoxin analysis due to their high selectivity, efficiency, and compatibility with various sample matrices.