Research and development in graphene synthesis has been rapidly growing in the past few years because of its extraordinary physical, mechanical, thermal, electrical and optical properties. Graphene flakes, one of the most popular forms of graphene, can be used for many applications such as conductive inks, nanofluids, supercapacitors, composites, etc. Synthesis of graphene flakes is indeed a path to reach large-scale production even if the cost of production and efficiency are required to be further improved. This review sheds light on the recent advancements of graphene flake synthesis and it gives a comprehensive analysis of the synthesis methods. Keys for further improvements are proposed based on the mechanisms involved in the graphene flake formation. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2018.