Metal-organic frameworks and beyond: The road toward zinc-based batteries

•This review first presents a systematic and in-depth description of structure-performance relationship for MOF-related materials in Zn-air, Zn-ion, Zn-Ni and Zn-I batteries.•This review proposes a holistic and deep understanding of the complex degradation mechanisms, and critically analyzes the possible optimized strategies.•The latest strategies of MOF-related materials in Zn-based batteries are critically overviewed.•An appropriate and comprehensive standard protocol is proposed to gauge the practical viability of MOF-related architectures in zinc-based batteries.