Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a systematic review of the current state of research regarding mobile social media use for value creation by firms and customers and an agenda for future research. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a systematic review following three main steps: keyword search, study selection and data extraction. A total of 53 articles were identified using academic databases and manual cross-referencing. By means of a thematic analysis method, the study addresses issues related to theory, methods, context, findings and gaps. Findings The study reviews and illustrates 14 value aspects of the mobile social media and value creation literature. The findings indicate that mobile social media are effective tools for firms to create and capture value from customers and for customers to co-create value. Originality/value The study contributes to the marketing and social media literature by proposing a conceptual framework that integrates the core components of value creation by firms and customers in the mobile social media context and by proposing an agenda for future research.