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<i>Colletotrichum</i> genus comprises a high number of plant pathogens causing anthracnose disease in different tropical and non-tropical crops. We aimed to review northern South American studies in the online SCOPUS database to: create a taxonomically updated list of the species complexes found in the region, describe their most important phytopathological characteristics, revise the methods used in the region to control disease, and discuss the role of fungus as a plant endophyte. A total of 19 <i>Colletotrichum</i> species within five complexes—acutatum, boninense, gigasporum, gloeosporioides, and orbiculare—have been reported in northern South America. Few studies have been conducted, particularly in Peru and Ecuador, despite the diversity of <i>Colletotrichum</i> hosts cultivated in the region. Important information can be extracted from our review: species do not appear to show host specificity, although some isolates show host preferences, certain plant species can host several <i>Colletotrichum</i> species, some studies show the importance of using plant extracts to control the disease, but biological control using microorganisms is certainly an open area of research in the region. In northern South America, only a few hosts have been reported to harbor <i>Colletotrichum</i> as endophyte, and the potential of these endophytes as biological control agents has not yet been explored.