Conventional lithium refining from hard rock sources, such as spodumene, is chemically intensive and produces significant waste. The commonly used process requires large quantities of sulfuric acid, soda ash, lime and caustic soda, while generating substantial volumes of low-value sodium sulfate effluent, which is increasingly challenging and costly to manage and dispose of. As global demand for lithium continues to grow, especially for applications in electric vehicles and energy storage, there is a need for more sustainable yet economically viable refining alternatives. Electrolysis-based lithium refining for hard rock sources offers a solution that effectively addresses the key challenges of incumbent processes. In this approach, the process begins with the same sulfuric acid sulfation step as in conventional refining to produce a lithium sulfate intermediate. However, instead of proceeding to the reagent-heavy chemical conversion step, which typically involves large amounts of soda ash or caustic soda, the lithium sulfate solution is instead directed to an electrolysis step. This step directly converts the lithium sulfate solution to an ultra-pure lithium hydroxide solution, which can be further processed into battery-grade lithium hydroxide or carbonate. Importantly, this step eliminates the co-generation of sodium sulfate waste. In addition to reducing the amount of chemicals consumed, electrolysis generates sulfuric acid as a byproduct. The sulfuric acid can be recycled back into upstream acid roasting and leaching operations, further decreasing the consumption of external reagents and offering a more sustainable, circular solution for lithium refining. This paper will primarily focus on the flow sheet integration, technological maturity and economics of electrolysis for the production of battery-grade lithium products from hard rock sources, benchmarking against conventional and other emerging technologies. It will describe two different electrolysis approaches, two and three compartment cells, either of which may be the more appropriate depending upon other technologies being used in the plant.