We present a facile, reliable and controllable two-steps electroless deposition for uniformly decorating the silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) on the highly aspect ratio of silicon (Si) nanowire arrays. Different from the direct Ag-loading process, which is normally challenged by the non-uniform coating of Ag, the formation of Ag NPs using such innovative electroless process is no longer to be limited at top nanowire surfaces solely; instead, each Ag+/Si interface can initiate the galvanic reduction of Ag+ ions, thus resulting in the uniform formation of Ag NPs on the entire Si nanowire arrays. In addition, systematic explorations of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) capability as well as antibacterial activity of the Ag/Si-incorporated nanostructures were performed, and the optimized Ag loadings on Si nanowire-based substrates along with the kinetic investigations were further revealed, which may benefit their practical applications in sensing, medical and biological needs. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.