Recent developments in renal magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) have led to a significant improvement in the technical success rate and diagnostic accuracy of the methods. Specifically, three-dimensional contrast-enhanced MRA methods have been shown to provide a more reliable depiction of renal artery morphology than do older MRA techniques. In addition, preliminary work using adjunctive MRA techniques suggests that it is possible to determine the hemodynamic significance of renal artery disease using MRA and magnetic resonance imaging. MRA methods will therefore likely play an important role in the evaluation of patients with renovascular disease.