Abstract Premature sexual maturation is a general term encompassing precocious puberty as well as several normal variants in both boys and girls. It is important to be able to determine the specific cause in order to formulate an appropriate plan of management. This review aims to describe the signs and symptoms of each variant, decide on the investigations needed to diagnose specific conditions and their cause, as the type of treatment has to be tailored to each individual condition. The primary goal of this article is to make the reader familiar with the concept of sexual precocity as well as the commonly encountered variants to enable him to differentiate between them and instigate appropriate management. Early sexual maturation causes a lot of anxiety to both parents and children and management is aimed at allaying that anxiety, addressing psychosocial implications and preventing further advancement of secondary sexual characteristics without compromising adult height as far as possible.