Alternative natural materials are natural materials like rock or adobe that are not as commonly used as building materials such as wood or iron. Alternative natural materials have many practical uses in areas such as sustainable architecture and engineering. The main purpose of using such materials is to minimize the negative effects that built environments can have on the environment, while increasing the efficiency and adaptability of the structures.

Alternative natural materials have existed for quite some time but often in very basic forms, or only as ingredients to a particular material. For example, earth used as a building material for walls of houses has existed for thousands of years. Much more recently, in the 1920s, the United States government promoted rammed earth as a fireproof construction method for building farmhouses. Another more common example is adobe. Adobe homes are prominent in the southwestern U.S. and several Spanish-speaking countries.

Straw bale construction is a more modern concept, but there exists evidence that straw was used to make homes in African prairies as far back as the Paleolithic times. Alternative natural materials, specifically their applications, have only recently made their way into more common use. The modern problems of global warming and climate change shifted more of a focus onto the materials and methods used to build our cityscape and homes. As environmentally conscious decisions became commonplace, the use of alternative natural materials instead of typical natural materials or man-made materials that rely heavily on natural resources became prominent.^{[citation needed]}

Rocks have two characteristics: good thermal mass and thermal insulation. The temperature in a house built from rock stays relatively constant, thus requiring less air conditioning and other cooling systems. Types of rocks that can be employed are reject stone (pieces of stone that are not able to be used for another task), limestone, and flagstone.^{[citation needed]}

In Asian countries, bamboo is used for structures like bridges and homes. Bamboo is surprisingly strong and flexible and grows incredibly fast, making it an abundant material. Although it can be difficult to join corners together, bamboo's material strength makes up for the hardships that can be encountered while building with it.^{[citation needed]}

Rammed earth is a very abundant material that can be used in place of concrete and brick. Soil is packed tightly into wall molds where it is rammed together and hardened to form a durable wall packing made of nothing more than dirt, stones, and sticks. Rammed earth also provides thermal mass, resulting in energy savings. In addition, it is very weatherproof and durable enough that it was used in the Great Wall of China.^{[citation needed]}

Earth sheltering is a unique building technique in which buildings are completely constructed by some form of earth on at least one side, whether it be a grass roof, clay walls, or both. This unique system usually includes plenty of windows because of the difficulty involved with using too much electricity in such a house.^{[citation needed]} This adds to the energy efficiency of the house by reducing lighting costs.

The Singapore School of Art, Media, and Design, has a roof made completely of sod (grass plus soil). This allows reduction of concrete and other conventional materials.