In the present study, thermochromic coatings have been produced by incorporating available thermochromic dye into appropriate binder system and other assistant components. These coatings are coated on glass substrates and aluminous substrates respectively. The absorptivity and transmittance of coatings on glass substrates illustrate that they are in colored phase at 20 degrees C, and turn into colorless phase when they are heated to 30 degrees C. Furthermore, the addition of TiO2 can increase the reflectance of the thermochromic coatings. Compared with colored phase, the reflectance spectra of all samples show that their colorless phase possesses higher reflectance in both visible and infrared range. The reflectance data of aluminous substrate samples show that solar reflectance increases when they are heated to colorless phase. Energy Plus software is used to perform energy simulation and study the energy saving performance of the prepared thermochromic coatings in different cities. The simulation results suggest that in warm area or regions which have a cold winter and warm summer, buildings with thermochromic coating may have a significant effect on energy saving while buildings with normal coatings need more energy in comparison. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.