ABSTRACT Prostate cancer is one of the neoplastic diseases with the highest morbidity and mortality in the world. The diversity of available treatments and side effects related to therapeutic treatments are severe and affect a patient's quality of life. Thus, to creating new therapeutic alternatives to reduce morbidity and creating safe and effective therapies is a constant challenge. Recently, the use of traditional medicine and chemoprevention has gained importance. Several clinical and epidemiological studies suggest that a high-terpenoid compound-based diet is associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer. This review is focused on the anti-proliferative effects of different terpenoids isolated from natural sources on human prostate cancer cells, with the aim of setting the basis to use these compounds as phytotherapeutic, nutraceutical and functional ingredients.