PURPOSE. The aim of this study was to evaluate the surface properties and in vitro bioactivity to osteoblasts of magnesium and magnesium-hydroxyapatite coated titanium. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Themagnesium (Mg) and magnesium-hydroxyapatite (Mg-HA) coatings on titanium (Ti) substrates were prepared by radio frequency (RF) and direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering.The samples were divided into non-coated smooth Ti (Ti-S group), Mg coatinggroup (Ti-Mg group), and Mg-HA coating group (Ti-MgHA group).The surface properties were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The surface roughness was evaluated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Cell adhesion, cell proliferation and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity were evaluated using MC3T3-E1 cells. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis was performed. RESULTS. Cross-sectional SEM images showed that Mg and Mg-HA depositionson titanium substrates were performed successfully. The surface roughness appeared to be similaramong the three groups. Ti-MgHA and Ti-Mg group had improved cellular responses with regard to the proliferation, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, and bone-associated markers, such as bone sialoprotein (BSP) and osteocalcin (OCN) mRNA compared to those of Ti-S group. However, the differences between Ti-Mg group and Ti-MgHA group were not significant, in spite of the tendency of higher proliferation, ALP activity and BSP expression in Ti-MgHA group. CONCLUSION. Mg and Mg-HAcoatings could stimulate the differentiation into osteoblastic MC3T3-E1 cells, potentially contributing to rapid osseointegration.