Abstract Developing countries, such as India, face the challenge of increased energy consumption in buildings. One of the reasons for high energy consumption is the large glazed facades of buildings that cause overheating. The energy consumption problem can be solved by optimizing passive design features of the building envelope at an early design stage according to the climate of that building location. This study determined the gaps in the building envelope optimization of office buildings in India and its requirement. Moreover, it reviewed variables of the building envelope design, current trends for simulation and optimization methodologies, criteria for selection of simulation, and optimization tools. More than 100 studies were reviewed, particularly studies performed in India on related topics. The results are based on statistical charts generated using the reviews. The results include the methodology for the research and development of a base case model, selection of building design variables, and simulation and optimizations tools.