<p>The petrographic attributes of rocks as effective indicators of physicomechanical properties have always interested researchers. In this paper, a new general classification of petrographic attributes was presented. In this classification, the petrographic attributes were categorized into microfabric characteristics and mineralogical indices. After that, a comprehensive review of the relationships between petrographic attributes with uniaxial compressive strength, dynamic hardness tests, P-wave velocity, density, porosity, and drilling/penetration rates of rock materials was performed based on the available literature. In general, it can be concluded that the petrographic characteristics have meaningful effects on the engineering properties of rocks. Also, petrographic attributes can be considered among the influential factors in the optimization of drilling operations in rocks. In other words, it can be said that petrographic attributes play a key role as controlling factors in the engineering properties of rocks such as wear of cutting tools, selecting the appropriate drilling methods, and lifetime of drill bits. Future studies must be focused on the lack of past researches in full detail. Based on extensive studies, there is a need to develop a new algorithm and software for the automatic analysis of microphotographs due to the time-consuming nature of the petrographic analyses. It is also possible to propose new classification systems for different rock types based on various petrographic characteristics, including grain compactness, aspect ratio, circularity, etc.</p>