Pt/carbon fiber composite (Pt/Cf) with a low Pt loading of 1.0 wt% is introduced into dye-sensitized solar cells as counter electrode (CE) catalyst. The cobalt-electrolyte based device using this composite CE achieves power conversion efficiency of 8.97%, a great improvement of 40.4% as compared to the Cf CE based device. This research provides a feasible route to reduce the dosage of Pt in DSCs system, benefiting for the commercial application of DSCs. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.