Transparent poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) based coatings with antimicrobial activity against a wide range of microorganisms have been prepared. The films have been prepared by spincoating a mixture of PVA, ammonium dichromate and metal (zinc or silver) precursor from water solutions, and then rendered insoluble by crosslinking under UV illumination. Antimicrobial activity has been tested against different bacteria and fungi, such as Bacillus atrophaeus, Bacillus megaterium, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica, Escherichia coli, Neurospora crassa, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It was found that combining the zinc and silver precursors resulted in films which had excellent antimicrobial activity and at the same time exhibited superior environmental stability compared to films containing prepared with single metal precursor. (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 122: 1572-1578, 2011