Conversion coatings on Ti-6Al-4V alloy was prepared through chemical modification in phytic acid and ammonium fluoride mixed solution. The influences of pH, time and the composition of solution on the microstructure of alloy surface were investigated. Scanning electron microscopy was used to observe the microstructure. The chemical composition of alloy surface before and after modification was investigated by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The results indicated that a conversion coating could be formed on the Ti-6Al-4V alloy in a mixed solution of phytic acid and ammonium fluoride, the growth and microstructure of the conversion coatings were critically dependent on the pH, time and concentration of phytic acid and ammonium fluoride. In 100 mg/ml phytic acid containing 125 mg/ml ammonium fluoride solution with a pH of 6, a compact conversion coating with the thickness of about 4.7 mu m formed after 30 min immersion on Ti-6Al-4V alloy surface. The preliminary evaluation of bioactivity of conversion coating was performed by in vitro cell experiments. The results showed that this chemical modification method is a promising surface modification technique for Ti-6Al-4V alloy inplants. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.