Background Developmental monitoring of children is an important strategy for the early detection and management of intellectual disabilities (ID) in high-income countries. This review summarizes the literature on identifying children with ID in low- and middle-income (LAMI) countries. Materials and methods Electronic literature database searches were conducted to identify articles in the English language published since 1990 relating to the identification of children with, or at risk of, ID in LAMI countries. Requests for information were also sent to the membership of International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disabilities and relevant organizations in selected LAMI countries. Results A total of 37 articles were identified for inclusion in the review, the majority of which concerned validation of specific screening tools. Information is presented on sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and reliability of identified screening tools. Conclusion Studies were mainly concerned with identifying child disability. Research and development should develop specific approaches to identifying ID among children in LAMI countries.