This paper aims to study effect of sizing on surface properties of carbon fiber and the fiber/epoxy interfacial adhesion by comparing sized and desized T300B and T700SC carbon fibers. By means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), activated carbon atoms can be detected, which are defined as the carbon atoms conjunction with oxygen and nitrogen. Surface chemistry analysis shows that the desized carbon fibers present less concentration of activated carbon, especially those connect with the hydroxyl and epoxy groups. Inverse gas chromatography (IGC) analysis reveals that the desized carbon fibers have larger dispersive surface energy gamma(D)(S) and smaller polar component gamma(SP)(S) than the commercial sized ones. Moreover, micro-droplet test shows that the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of the desized carbon fiber/epoxy is higher than those of the T300B and T700SC. Variations of the IFSS for both the sized and desized carbon fibers correspond to gamma(D)(S)/gamma(S) tendency of the fiber surface, however the work of adhesion does not reveal close correlation with IFSS trend for different fiber/epoxy systems. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.