This review discusses the simultaneous production of hydrogen and removal of pollutants using photocatalytic methods. The focus is on mechanisms, synthesis of photocatalysts, and applications. The method utilizes organic pollutants as sacrificial agents for hydrogen production, thus reducing pollution and generating energy. Various photocatalysts, including metal-doped, cocatalyst-loaded, organic and inorganic composites, heterostructures, and heterojunctions, are described. Applications to the removal of antibiotics and organic dyes are presented, with degradation rates ranging from 5.3 to 100% and hydrogen evolution rates of 13.7-2724.89 μmol·g⁻¹h⁻¹. The review highlights the importance of sacrificial agents in photocatalytic hydrogen production, their role in facilitating hydrogen evolution, and their implications. It also explains the photocatalytic mechanism involved in coupled or synchronous hydrogen production and organic pollutant degradation, considering factors such as absorption, redox capability, band structure, quantum efficiency, and pollutant structure. Recent advancements in coupled photocatalytic processes for pollutant degradation and hydrogen production are summarized and analyzed. The review discusses the mechanism of photocatalytic hydrogen production from wastewater and pollutant degradation. It describes the three key steps in visible light-driven photocatalytic water splitting: light absorption by the photocatalyst to generate electron-hole pairs, separation and migration of these photoexcited charge carriers, and reduction of protons to hydrogen by electrons on the conduction band. The role of sacrificial agents in photocatalytic hydrogen production is discussed, along with their importance and implications. The review also explores the use of pollutants as sacrificial agents in photocatalytic hydrogen generation. It discusses the role of pollutants in the energetically uphill nature of water splitting and the challenges of conventional photocatalysts. The review highlights the potential of organic and inorganic pollutants as sacrificial agents for photocatalytic hydrogen production. The review summarizes the synthesis of various photocatalysts, including metal-doped, cocatalyst-loaded, organic and inorganic composites, heterostructures, and heterojunctions. It discusses the synthesis of photocatalysts, their properties, and their applications in photocatalytic hydrogen production and pollutant degradation. The review discusses the role of heterostructures and heterojunctions in photocatalytic hydrogen production and pollutant degradation. It explains the different types of heterojunctions, including conventional (type I, type II, and type III), p–n heterojunctions, Z-Scheme (direct and indirect), and S-Scheme heterojunctions. It highlights the advantages and challenges of Z-Scheme and S-Scheme heterojunctions in photocatalytic processes. The review discusses the control of reaction parameters in photocatalytic processes, including the concentration of pollutants, photocatalyst dosage, dopant type and weight percentage, pollutant type and concentration, aerobic andThis review discusses the simultaneous production of hydrogen and removal of pollutants using photocatalytic methods. The focus is on mechanisms, synthesis of photocatalysts, and applications. The method utilizes organic pollutants as sacrificial agents for hydrogen production, thus reducing pollution and generating energy. Various photocatalysts, including metal-doped, cocatalyst-loaded, organic and inorganic composites, heterostructures, and heterojunctions, are described. Applications to the removal of antibiotics and organic dyes are presented, with degradation rates ranging from 5.3 to 100% and hydrogen evolution rates of 13.7-2724.89 μmol·g⁻¹h⁻¹. The review highlights the importance of sacrificial agents in photocatalytic hydrogen production, their role in facilitating hydrogen evolution, and their implications. It also explains the photocatalytic mechanism involved in coupled or synchronous hydrogen production and organic pollutant degradation, considering factors such as absorption, redox capability, band structure, quantum efficiency, and pollutant structure. Recent advancements in coupled photocatalytic processes for pollutant degradation and hydrogen production are summarized and analyzed. The review discusses the mechanism of photocatalytic hydrogen production from wastewater and pollutant degradation. It describes the three key steps in visible light-driven photocatalytic water splitting: light absorption by the photocatalyst to generate electron-hole pairs, separation and migration of these photoexcited charge carriers, and reduction of protons to hydrogen by electrons on the conduction band. The role of sacrificial agents in photocatalytic hydrogen production is discussed, along with their importance and implications. The review also explores the use of pollutants as sacrificial agents in photocatalytic hydrogen generation. It discusses the role of pollutants in the energetically uphill nature of water splitting and the challenges of conventional photocatalysts. The review highlights the potential of organic and inorganic pollutants as sacrificial agents for photocatalytic hydrogen production. The review summarizes the synthesis of various photocatalysts, including metal-doped, cocatalyst-loaded, organic and inorganic composites, heterostructures, and heterojunctions. It discusses the synthesis of photocatalysts, their properties, and their applications in photocatalytic hydrogen production and pollutant degradation. The review discusses the role of heterostructures and heterojunctions in photocatalytic hydrogen production and pollutant degradation. It explains the different types of heterojunctions, including conventional (type I, type II, and type III), p–n heterojunctions, Z-Scheme (direct and indirect), and S-Scheme heterojunctions. It highlights the advantages and challenges of Z-Scheme and S-Scheme heterojunctions in photocatalytic processes. The review discusses the control of reaction parameters in photocatalytic processes, including the concentration of pollutants, photocatalyst dosage, dopant type and weight percentage, pollutant type and concentration, aerobic and