Separation and purification techniques are applied in many important fields, such as in the medical, chemical, metallurgical, environmental, and pharmaceutical industries. Recent advances in separation science and the urgent need for highly selective purification have necessitated a rapid progress with respect to the reagents, chemicals, and surfactants used in separation processes to attain a high efficiency and selectivity. Polymeric materials have attracted considerable interest, and they have been widely used as extractants, catalysts, and modifiers, in separation and purification processes. This review outlines the recent advances in the use of novel polymers, natural and synthetic, in different separation and purification techniques. Various separation techniques such as chromatography, crystallization, precipitation, distillation, electrophoresis, filtration, and mineral processing methods are discussed, and the polymers used in each method are described in terms of their properties, structure, and function. The application of polymers shows great promise in achieving a highly efficient separation, especially in the areas of membrane separation and water purification. The rational design of new multifunctional polymers with triggered functions presumably presents new opportunities for the development of advanced separation methods.