Solar control coatings required for architectural glazing applications in tropical locations warrant much attention due to their vital role in energy conservation. The solar control properties of Cu2Se thin film coatings were investigated and the results are presented. It was observed that Cu2Se coatings have moderate optical transmittance and low reflectance in the visible region and high reflectance and low transmittance in the IR region. These characteristics are useful for the above purpose. The evaluation of their solar control parameters in the visible and IR region showed that they exhibit superior solar control characteristics in certain respects over the metallic and PbS coatings and have comparable characteristics with CuxS films. © 1992 IOP Publishing Ltd.