The survival of the world and of living beings depends on water. Therefore, the deficiency of water resources can cause serious problems. More than 50 % of the world's population faces some form of water deficiency. Some of the causes are the constant population growth, the pollution of both surface and ground waters, the inadequate distribution of water resources and the occasional droughts. Moreover, polluted water equally affects the animal and the plant kingdoms and the death of many water animals is a direct consequence of polluted water entering the sea. Given the fact that our world is not separated from the worlds of animals, birds and plants, the danger of these various types of pollution becomes greater every day. Today, the increasing emission of industrial wastewater represents a growing issue. Phenolic compunds can be traced among the most dangerous pollutans and their identification is crucial for the water's quality assessment and for the environment's safeguard. They represent a high risk for the ecosystem and for the human health due to their toxic and carcinogenic properties. This thesis gives an overview of analytical methods for the detection of phenols in wastewater. Among the analytical methods, spectrophotometric method, High Performance Liquid Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry need to be pointed out. The choice of an appropriate method depends on the composition and quantity of water, the desired efficiency of the process, environmental acceptability and operational costs.