The assessment of emotional intelligence and emotional competencies in higher education represents a constant challenge due to the complexity of these constructs and their increasing relevance in the academic and professional environment. This study aims to analyze the publications that report on the creation or validation of instruments to assess emotional intelligence and emotional competencies in adults, with special emphasis on their application in higher education. For this purpose, an exhaustive systematic review of articles published between 1994 and 2022 in the Web of Science, Scopus and SciELO databases was carried out, following the PRISMA methodology. Of the 4653 articles initially identified, 67 met the inclusion criteria. The results show the temporal evolution of scientific production, identifying authors, journals, countries, sample types and psychometric properties of the instruments analyzed. It is observed that the construction of tools to assess emotional intelligence began in 1998, while the development of specific instruments to measure emotional competencies intensified from 2010. In addition, in recent years there has been a growing interest in the assessment of emotional intelligence in adult populations with disabilities, mental health conditions or in contexts of deprivation of liberty, reflecting an inclusive approach. Finally, this systematic review highlights the proliferation of instruments in higher education and their importance for the development of training programs and intervention strategies aimed at strengthening these competencies in students and professionals.