Twenty years after its development, antibody phage display using filamentous bacteriophage represents the most successful in vitro antibody selection technology. Initially, its development was encouraged by the unique possibility of directly generating recombinant human antibodies for therapy. Today, antibody phage display has been developed as a robust technology offering great potential for automation. Generation of monospecific binders provides a valuable tool for proteome research, leading to highly enhanced throughput and reduced costs. This review presents the phage display technology, application areas of antibodies in research, diagnostics and therapy and the use of antibody phage display for these applications.