Chlorella sp. and Monoraphidium sp. were the potential microalgal species for lipid production. This study aimed to investigate different light intensities (40, 200, 400 lmol photon m(-2) s(-1)) on physiological changes, photosynthetic carbon partitioning and neutral lipid accumulation in both microalgae. Results suggested that under high light (HL, 400 lmol photon m (2) s (1)), chlorophyll degraded, protein and carbohydrate content decreased; more carbon allocated into lipid as well as most of intracellular space was occupied by lipid bodies. Moreover, with the lipid accumulation, Fv/Fm decreased and ROS scavenging enzyme increased. Membrane lipid reduced dramatic (29.73-37.97%) to format NL (71.66% of total lipid in Chlorella sp. L1 and 60.65% in Monoraphidium dybowskii Y2). The NL productivity under HL (51.36 and 49.71 mg L (1) d (1)) were more than 3 times of those under LL. Additionally, FAME profiles proved that the useful fatty acid components for biodiesel production were enhanced under HL. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.