Photothermal superhydrophobic textiles represent an emerging paradigm integrating active light-driven functionality with passive liquid repellency. While previous reviews treated superhydrophobicity and photothermal effects in isolation, this work pioneers a systematic analysis of their synergistic interplay—a critical, underexplored mechanism where superhydrophobicity preserves photothermal efficiency by minimizing water-induced heat loss, while photothermal activity prevents surface fouling that compromises non-wetting performance. Through detailed case studies of advanced material systems, this review highlights how this synergy supports significant advancements in adaptive wearable technology, energy-efficient infrastructure, and eco-friendly water treatment. This review presents an original “lab-to-life” roadmap that structurally links material design to durability assessment, environmental impact evaluation, and scalable manufacturing strategies—a holistic framework absent in existing literature. The review emphasizes urgent sustainability priorities including green material substitutions, non-toxic solvent processing methodologies, and circular design principles aligned with global environmental regulations. By connecting fundamental mechanisms to real-world deployment scenarios while outlining transformative future directions such as AI-accelerated material discovery, stimulus-responsive systems, and intelligent manufacturing protocols, this work provides a timely and actionable reference for advancing next-generation textiles toward technological sophistication and practical viability in sustainable development.

Highlights:
1 This review proposes a representative framework for photothermal superhydrophobic textiles, highlighting the transition from single-material studies toward integrated, system-level design and intelligent applications.
2 This review deciphers the synergistic mechanism between photothermal conversion and superhydrophobicity, linking nano‑/micro‑scale material design to active de‑icing and self‑cleaning performance.
3 This review critically analyzes scalable fabrication, real‑world applications, and key challenges, while outlining AI‑guided optimization and stimulus‑responsive systems as future pathways.