This paper reviews the characteristics of smart materials, such as Piezoelectrics (PZT), shape memory alloys (SMA) and mganetostrictive materials (Terfenol-D). Since the properties of these smart materials vary greatly in terms of free strain and actuation stress, there is a need to identify the optimum smart materials for a particular application. From the review and comparison of different types of pumps (based on PZT, SMA and Terfenol-D), we recognize that these pumps have their unique advantages in specific application fields.