Quantum information processing relies on the precise control of non-classical states in the presence of many uncontrolled environmental degrees of freedom. The interactions between the relevant degrees of freedom and the environment are often viewed as detrimental, as they dissipate energy and decohere quantum states. Nonetheless, when controlled, dissipation is an essential tool for manipulating quantum information: dissipation engineering enables quantum measurement, quantum-state preparation and quantum-state stabilization. The advances in quantum technologies, marked by improvements of characteristic coherence times and extensible architectures for quantum control, have coincided with the development of such dissipation engineering tools that interface quantum and classical degrees of freedom. This Review presents dissipation as a fundamental aspect of the measurement and control of quantum devices, and highlights the role of dissipation engineering in quantum error correction and quantum simulation. Controlled dissipation can be used to protect quantum information, control dynamics and enforce constraints. This Review explains the basic principles and overviews the applications of dissipation engineering to quantum error correction, quantum sensing and quantum simulation.