This paper aims to conduct a review analysis related to the terms cost of quality (COQ), cost of poor quality, and hidden quality cost. The analysis of publication data provides insights on understanding historical publication trends for the identification of research gaps related to hidden quality costs. The SCOPUS database was searched, which included journals only. This involved analysis via historical and current research, trending across different countries, academic journals, academic institutions, and prolific authors’ analyses. This literature review revealed that research on COQ spans across various disciplines such as manufacturing, management, healthcare, and construction, with increased interest starting in the 1980s. This trend of increased research around COQ has continued to increase, with a cumulative trend of publications showing steady linear growth over time. This paper has categorized the research trend based on core journals, countries, authors, etc. Although there has been extensive research on COQ, there has been limited research specifically focusing on cost of poor quality and hidden quality cost. The findings from this review analysis reinforce the need for future-focused research on hidden quality cost, research to identify and calculate hidden quality cost, and research towards the development of a comprehensive COQ model encompassing hidden quality cost.