This review summarizes the synthesis and coordination chemistry of a series of carboranyl ligands containing N,O donors. Such carborane-based ligands are scarcely reported in the literature when compared to other heteroatom-containing donors. The synthetic routes for metal complexes of these N,O-type carborane ligands are summarized and the properties of such complexes are described in detail. Particular attention is paid to the effect that the incorporation of carboranes has into the coordination chemistry of the otherwise carbon-based ligands and the properties of such materials. The reported complexes show a variety of properties such as those used in magnetic, chiroptical, nonlinear optical, catalytic and biomedical applications. ; We thank MEC grants CTQ2013-44670-R, MAT2013-47869-C4-2-P and Generalitat de Catalunya 2014/SGR/00149 for financial support. We would like to thank and dedicate this review to the people and key players in the papers of our group; their work has wonderfully influenced our research in the past few years. ; Peer reviewed