In this study, silver nanoparticles were synthesized on cotton fabric modified with 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTMS) using sodium citrate as a reducing/stabilizing agent by microwave-assisted process. The presence of a highly oriented amino-terminated self-assembled monolayer and formation of APTMS was demonstrated by an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. The silver-coated cotton fabrics were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX). UV protection, antistatic, and hydrophobic properties were also evaluated. The results show that silver-coated fabric modified with APTMS possesses excellent antistatic, UV protection with ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 396.5 and superhydrophobic properties with contact angle of 153.2 degrees. APTMS pretreatment improves the adhesive strength between silver coatings and cotton fabric. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 3862-3868, 2013