AbstractThe efficiency of organic-inorganic hybrid lead halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has increased over 25% within a frame of ten years, which is phenomenal and indicative of the promising potential of perovskite materials in impacting the next generation solar cells. Despite high technology readiness of PSCs, the presence of lead has raised concerns about the adverse effect of lead on human health and the environment that may slow down or inhibit the commercialization of PSCs. Thus, there is a dire need to identify materials with lower toxicity profile and comparable optoelectronic properties in regard to lead-halide perovskites. In comparison to tin-, germanium-, and copper-based PSCs, which suffer from stability issues under ambient operation, bismuth-based perovskite and perovskite-inspired materials have gained attention because of their enhanced stability in ambient atmospheric conditions. In this topical review, we initially discuss the background of lead and various lead-free perovskite materials and further discuss the fundamental aspects of various bismuth-based perovskite and perovskite-inspired materials having a chemical formula of A₃Bi₂X₉, A₂B′BiX₆, B′_aBi_bX_a+3b(A = Cs⁺, MA⁺and bulky organic ligands; B′ = Ag⁺, Cu⁺; X = I⁻, Cl⁻, Br⁻) and bismuth triiodide (BiI₃) semiconducting material particularly focusing on their structure, optoelectronic properties and the influence of compositional variation on the photovoltaic device performance and stability