This chapter presents methods for evaluating tissue-engineered constructs in vitro to determine how well they recapitulate native tissue properties. It outlines commonly used approaches for assessing gross morphology, histological features, biochemical content, and biomechanical properties of native cartilages and tissue-engineered neocartilage. In addition, it introduces advanced characterization techniques, including microscopy and spectroscopy methods, sequencing technologies, and lipidomics. The chapter also describes the functionality index, a tool for quantifying the extent to which tissue-engineered cartilage matches native tissue across multiple functional properties in a single metric. Altogether, the techniques covered in this chapter form the foundation of benchtop evaluation methods for characterizing native tissue and evaluating tissue-engineered neocartilage.