Current tools for the diagnosis and detection of spotted fever group Rickettsia

•This review summarizes the diagnostic and detection tools that are currently available or in development for the confirmation of infections by SFG rickettsiae.•Despite being highly sensitive, many diagnostic and detection assays are not utilized in the clinical setting due to the lack of access to the necessary reagents or laboratory equipments.•The selection of the appropriate diagnostic assay for SFG rickettial infection is not straight forward because the sensitivity of the serological and molecular assays depends on the antibody kinetics from disease onset.•A number of novel serological and molecular approaches are currently in development, however, most of them are not yet tested in the clinical setting.•The utility of the detection tools for the surveillance of SFR rickettsiae in vectors and animals are also reviewed.