 The development of silver nanoparticles, AGNPS, has led to an increased demand for their use in various sectors due to their numerous applications. However, the increased use of AGNPS may result in toxicity affecting both the environment and living organisms. This review aims to elucidate the properties of AGNPS that induce cellular toxicity and the critical mechanism of action observed in vitro. The results show that the physiochemical properties of AGNPS, such as size, shape, concentration, agglomeration, or aggregation interaction with a biological system, can cause impairment of mitochondrial function prior to their penetration and accumulation in the mitochondrial membrane. Therefore, AGNPS exhibit properties that play a central role in their use as biosides along with their applicability in environmental cleaning.