Electroless Ni-P plates are recently being explored for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The variation of phosphorous content in the Ni-P plates affects the physico-chemical and electrocatalytic properties of the plates. These properties of the Ni-P plates also depend on the presence of second-phase composites in the plates. In the present work, the role of phosphorous content on the physico-chemical and electrocatalytic properties of electroless Ni-P plates was studied systematically. The plates with optimum phosphorous content were found to consist of a mixture of amorphous and crystalline phase. The reinforcement of the plates with TiO2 further enhanced the roughness factor, number of electro-active sites and hydrogen adsorption ability. The TiO2 reinforced plates exhibited high electrocatalytic activity during HER. (C) 2007 International Association for Hydrogen Energy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.