Small oscillatory rheology (SAOS) has been used to describe the structural build-up of cement pastes and has recently proven a promising method to measure the nature of interactions between cementitious particles. Indeed, it has been shown that the evolution of the storage modulus (G’) with time, imposing a deformation within the paste linear viscoelastic regime, tracks the development of interaction forces inside pastes and quantifies their cohesion. This gives information about the physico-chemical mechanisms happening at the microscopic scale that is otherwise difficult to access experimentally through direct measurements. These measurements are becoming more necessary in light of the challenges that the construction industry is facing. Indeed, construction materials are ubiquitous throughout the world, and their significant CO2 impact requires the urgent development of sustainable alternatives. Latter can constitute new formulations by partially or completely replacing the classical cement, bringing new complexity at the physico-chemical level which needs to be characterized through innovative tools like SAOS. During this talk, we will first go through the role of SAOS in the characterization of a C3S paste and a C-S-H gel, combining it with surface force apparatus measurements (SFA). Then, a parallel between SAOS and other techniques (XRPD) will be made on a wide range of sustainable alternative binders such as milled clay, alkali-activated slag, and recycled concrete.