Size
Chameleons are climbers. This is an important fact to understand because without room to climb a chameleon will not be able to act out one of its most primal instincts.. To be higher than any danger that may be present. This means that most usual enclosures will not do (i.e. tanks, some terrariums depending on breed). For most true chameleons I would recommend one of two sizes... For males of most any breed you may commonly come across (Veiled, Panther, Jackson, Meller) I would recommend an enclosure no smaller than 2'x2'x4'... This gives the chameleon lots of room to hunt for its food, hide, and from an aesthetic point of view it is a lot more fun to create a habitat of this size (personally ;) ). For females of the same breed while they can just as easily be kept in a 2'x2'x4' enclosure they will also do very well in an enclosure of 18"x18"x36". One thing that must be taken into account though is age... While I myself introduced my cham into his full enclosure of 4 feet in height immediately at 3 months old it is recommended that a cage be smaller for them to grow into first... Eliminating the stress factor. One way this can be achieved is by simply closing off the bottom portion of the cage. Or since most enclosures you will find on the market have PVC bottom it is even possible to elevate the bottom by using a STURDY means, making sure that it is very stable. Then you can grow the cage to its full capacity after a while (I've seen most doing this around 6-7 months but it really all depends on your cham). Now for so-called false chameleons which include breeds of Pygmy Chameleons, cages take up much less space as these chams tend to be bottom dwellers. For these guys I would still recommend one of the larger terrariums (see Materials below) as they are still a climbing, hiding creature.
Materials
One thing that is debated in the chameleon world is plastic/plexiglass terrariums versus mesh enclosures. I personally (I cant stress that enough) have decided to stick with mesh/screen enclosures. It provides ample airflow and takes away the possibility of getting stagnant air or conditions that would aid in bacteria growth. There is also a chance, especially in male panthers, that the reflection that can be given off by the glass can cause the chameleon to see itself, SEVERELY stressing him out.There are cases I have seen where there has been successful husbandry using plexiglass EXO-Terra terrariums and in the case of most younger chams it can be completely acceptable. But from the information I have gathered it is better to simply stick with a screen enclosure. Now if you are residing in Europe where the climate may be much drier it is MORE than acceptable, almost the norm to use plexiglass. When it comes right down to it, most here in the states will tell you screen, but in reality it is a personal choice I am just giving my two cents. But when it comes to those smaller, Pygmy chams a terrarium is IDEAL because they need it what the particular airflow can provide.
Lighting
Just think tropical and you will understand what your cham needs. They need heat and they need what is called UVB. UVB is the light energy that comes from the sun but is blocked out by windows and plexiglass (that means setting the cage by a window tends not to work. They also need high temperature gradients within the cage to provide the cham ample room to be comfortable. This is BEST achieved by providing a UVB light (I use the reptiSun as it came recommended to me) and an incandescent light source to provide the heat for the habitat. UVB is extremely important to your cham as the radiation is what allows chams to digest the calcium they intake. Now when picking the incandescent bulb you must know what temperature you want to achieve. Because I live with someone who likes to freeze at all hours of the day I went with a 100 watt bulb that sits 8" away from the perch (with several areas he can get closer without burning) which gives me a top temperature of 92 degrees which is on the higher end of their gradient but he likes it so I leave it. It is perfectly acceptable though to use a bulb that is 60 watts as some chams will want a lower basking temp around 80-88 degrees which can be achieved through this manner. You will want to give a space of at least 8 inches due to the fact that if a cham came too close it could give itself very serious burns without realizing it. This light should be its only heat source. Don't fall victim to the heat vine, heat rock, heat pad as they are wastes of money since a cham takes in the heat on its back side. Provide both UVB and heat for between 10-12 hours a day as this will simulate proper daytime and give the cham the heat and radiation it needs to properly maintain its digestive system. At night there really shouldn't be any surce of light or heat as these may bother your cham and chams can live in temps usually as far down as 65 degrees so unless your home is cooler than that a heat source isn't necessary.
Plants
Another area of debate within the chameleon world is live foliage versus fake. In this battle I have researched and live has come out victorious. Even though fake is obviously easier to take care of, live foliage has many pros that easily outweigh its cons. Humidity is extremely important (see Hydration below) and having live plants makes it much easier to maintain proper levels. The will also grow to fit the cage and are much easier to "train" into the cage, making the environment truly one of a kind. Most commonly plants such as ficus or pothos are used because they have heavy foliage and are animal safe. I personally have a dracaena in the cage and I use pothos outside the cage as a free range but thats another post ;). It is important when picking plants that you give your little guy/gal room to hide, to seek shade because otherwise the almighty stress may occur and nobody likes a frowny chameleon. There are many lists out in the world, I will post some at the end, that give healthy plant lists for chams. The truth is these sites mostly provide mammal safe plants. There are HUNDREDS of these plants so honestly you cant go wrong but be sure to properly clean every plant that goes near your cham as the pesticides could prove to be deadly. It is also very important to make sure that only organic soil is used in repotting plants. This is because when your cham begins to hunt it can easily attempt food down by the base and may accidentally grab a mouthfull of miracle grow which could lead to very serious health concerns. Also avoid the temptation to add a cover for the soil such as pebbles as these may also get inadvertently eaten causing obvious concerns. If a cover is required I suggest a larger river rock that cant get eaten but even those may provide a safe haven for bacteria.
Hydration
Hydration is key. These animals need a LOT of humidity and there are many ways to achieve this. The most common way I have seen is a system known as the MistKing. While these are not the cheapest solution it guarantees proper hydration when the settings are correct which for what I have found through research has been misting about 3-4 times a day for a period of about 1-1.5 minutes... Not drowning the poor guy/gal with too much of course. This though will not be enough in most cases (though in my case I have found that my cham does just fine just misting). Another system of dripping water is needed to simulate the natural habitat of your cham. This "drip" will stimulate the chams instinct to drink, ensuring proper hydration. DONT fall victim to high priced drip systems. A simple contraption of a cup with a pin hole in the bottom that slowly drips suffices in most cases... Again MANY methods, these are mine. You will know proper hydration is being achieved by the stool of your cham (EW I know). There are two parts of the stool, for this you are looking at the whitish part. If this part is more of a yellow or orange, proper hydration is NOT being achieved. The whiter the better. Also again DONT fall for the big chain pet stores method of sales by buying any kind of waterfall or device that allows standing water. These provide growing zones for bacteria and in most cases standing water just means "defecate here".
Furnishings
As I stated before, chameleons are climbers, therefore giving them plenty to climb on is essential to their happiness in their new home. There are many commercial ways to do this such as fake vines (Flukers vines worked for me). With these make sure to provide different widths and don't worry, when in doubt, its probably not too skinny for them to balance on. Just make sure as they get bigger your not giving them thread ;). These vines can be bent and contorted to give your guy/gal plenty of room to move around on. In addition to vines, a more "earthy" way to do it is with twigs or branches. But again before ANYTHING foreign gets to your cham, make sure it is sterilized (For branches, a quick bake in the oven works). When placing vines or branches be sure to give both horizontal AND vertical climbing areas as it better simulates their environment. Personally I decided to use a technique that helped me better regulate my chams body temperature. The method I used was wooden dowels (after baked of course). By placing four dowels at different levels in the cage I was able to provide my cham with four different temperature "zones" that he could easily move to using the vines and leaves, depending on his wants at the time. For the bottom keep it as BARE as possible. Adding a substrate acts as a bacteria/feeder hiding area which could lead to many issues. It may not be as aesthetically pleasing but your cham will thank you.
Random Tid-Bits
So here I will answer hopefully some of the "well what if questions" you may have and add some important random info about enclosures. When it comes to the cage as a whole, I stated before, chams like to be above the danger. Therefore, try to place the enclosure so that when he/she wants to be, they can be above you or at eye level. This will aid greatly in relieving stress. Also, the enclosure is home, a safe place, that means when it comes to introducing yourself or making changes, try to go at the chameleons pace, otherwise, especially with younger ones, they may grow to be EXTRA anti-social, as if they weren't anti-social as it is.
When it comes to feeding there are three main methods... Hand, cup, and hunting...
At this point my cham has done all three but CURRENTLY only like cup feeding and catching the escape artist crickets that make their way around the cage. With cup feeding there are many ways to place the cup but a few things are certain... Keep it clean and keep it empty at night. When these crickets get going at night that feeder cup looks like a poop-fest and when the humidity gets to it, it only gets worse... So make it easily accessible by you AND the cham and keep it clean.
I hope that all of this has helped you in making some decisions... Let me know if theres anything I missed :)
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