A century has passed after Friedrich Miescher performed first DNA isolation. Since that first phenol-chloroform isolation methods and protocols for DNA isolation have greatly improved and are nowadays used in almost all fields of genetics and molecular biology. DNA isolation has progressed with the aim of processing as many samples as possible in the shortest possible time. As a response to the demand of world laboratories for the most advanced, today there is a large number of DNA isolation kits on the market. DNA isolation usually requires optimized protocols for DNA isolation depending on the type of sample that is going to be processed. In this thesis methods for isolation that are commonly used in forensic laboratories are described and compared. Isolation methods were compared based on samples that can be processed, DNA purity, duration, simplicity of usage, ability for simultaneous processing of samples, probability of contamination and price. Methods that use solid phase have proved to be the most effective of all techniques available on the market while automation has reduced the possibility of errors and contamination. In the future, a system should be designed that will be able to handle all types of samples equally efficient and would represent the golden standard for DNA isolation.