The number of people with end stage kidney failure is increasing worldwide, mainly due to aging of the population. Hence the need for renal replacement therapy is continually expanding. Kidney transplantation, haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis are currently the gold standard of renal replacement therapy. These three techniques have all their specific advantages and shortcomings. Facing the high complication rate of actual techniques, an increasingly migrant population and the growing desire to respect the environment, alternatives are needed. New techniques that might improve some of these points are in development and will be reviewed in this article.