Carbon-supported Ir 3 Sn/C and Ir/C catalysts were simply prepared with NaBH 4 as a reducing agent under the protection of ethylene glycol at room temperature. TEM and X-ray diffraction (XRD) data showed that the catalysts with small particle size exhibited the typical characteristic of a crystalline Ir fcc structure. Their electrocatalytic activities in comparison with Pt/C and Pt 3 Sn/C catalysts also prepared by the NaBH 4 reduction process were characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV), linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and chronoamperometry (CA) techniques. The results indicated that Ir-based catalysts showed superior electrocatalytic activity towards ethanol oxidation to Pt/C and Pt 3 Sn/C catalysts, mainly in the low potential region. During single-cell tests at 90°C, better performances of Ir-based catalysts as anodes were obtained compared to that of Pt/C catalyst. The comparable overall performance of Ir 3 Sn/C to Pt 3 Sn/C makes it a promising alternative choice of anode catalyst for direct ethanol fuel cells.