The coatings containing Cr that are widely used now include CrN coatings,and the CrNbased coatings formed through adding Si and C elements,such as CrSiN,CrCN and CrSiCN coatings.The microstructure and tribological properties of above four kinds of coatings were reviewed.The influence of Si and C element content on the microstructure and tribological properties of coatings was analyzed.It was pointed out that the addition of Si and C elements could enhance the mechanical properties of CrNbased coatings,and the reasons were analyzed from the perspective of the microstructure of CrNbased coatings.