In the present study, we fundamentaly analyzed the interfacial reaction and evaluated the joint strength in dissimilar diffusion bonding of Al alloys to steels. The growth of the reaction layer consisting of FeAl3 and Fe2Al5 intermetallic compounds followed the parabolic growth low. The joints with 5000 series At alloys had a higher growth rate of the reaction layer than the joints with A6061 Al alloy. The joints of A6061 Al alloy to HT980steel had the lowest growth rate of the reaction layer. The joint strength depended on the thickness of the reaction layer. The A6061 Al alloy/steel joints had the maximum joint strength at around 1 mu m of average reaction layer thickness.