Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary bone tumor worldwide. OS exhibits a range of aggressive behaviors, including early metastasis potential, rapid progression, poor clinical prognosis and insensitivity to chemoradiotherapy. Non‑coding RNAs are transcripts that do not encode proteins. A significant number of studies published on OS have been focused on the aberrant expression of non‑coding RNAs and their involvement in tumor initiation and progression. It has been confirmed that non‑coding RNAs exert their regulatory functions at both the transcriptional and post‑transcriptional level, which leads to tumor initiation or progression in OS. According to present knowledge, this review provides a state‑of‑the‑art overview of the functions and mechanisms of microRNAs, long non‑coding RNAs and circular RNAs in terms of their involvement with OS. The review also covers their potential clinical application in the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of OS. It is hoped that the information presented in this review on the involvement of non‑coding RNAs in OS will lead to a more comprehensive understanding of OS and provide a useful perspective on the potential diagnostic and therapeutic applications of non‑coding RNAs for patients with OS.