The history of mammalogy in Chile dates to the work of several naturalists, of which we can mention Juan Ignacio Molina, Claudio Gay, Charles R. Darwin, and Rodulfo A. Philippi, among others. Furthermore, we emphasize the early inputs of other foreign mammalogists, such as John A. Wolffsohn, Colin C. Sanborn, Wilfred H. Osgood, and Guillermo Mann, who made major contributions to the knowledge of Chilean mammals. More recently, the publications of Andrés Muñoz-Pedreros and Agustín Iriarte have further contributed to the knowledge of the nation’s mammalogy, with both authors having released important books about Chilean mammals in this century. We thus present an overview of what is known about Chilean mammals, considering the biogeographic context, its diversity and conservation status, the history, museums and collections, mammal meetings, and research. This latter topic considers the most recent studies conducted by different Chilean and foreign mammalogists regarding the major taxonomic groups represented in the country (Marsupialia, Rodentia, Chiroptera, Carnivora, and Cetartiodactyla).