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Gasification is a thermochemical conversion process in which carbonaceous feedstock is gasified in a controlled atmosphere to generate a synthesis gas, often called syngas, consisting primarily of CO2, CO, H2, and CH4. CO and H2 are the most desirable constituents, used in downstream applications such as combustion to generate heat and power or conversion into fuels and chemicals. CO2 is a greenhouse gas which is increasingly being regulated due to its negative impact on the environment. Also, since CO2 is in its completely oxidized state, it does not have any heating value. Apart from these gases, the syngas also consists of tars, NH3, and H2S which possess various problems due to their corrosive nature and their ability to clog and deactivate catalysts. These contaminants must be removed to improve the gas quality before the gas is usable in downstream applications. Carbon-based catalysts include a wide variety of catalyst types such as activated carbon, char, molecular sieves and others. These catalysts are increasingly being used in various gas cleaning and upgrading applications due to their wide variations in properties such as conversion efficiency, selectivity, mechanical strength, ease of synthesis, sustainable precursors and cost. This paper will review these carbon-based catalysts, their synthesis techniques and properties, and their applications for syngas cleanup.