The influences of heat treatment and surface sizing on coating penetration were studied using two types of commercial base papers. Dry oven was used for heat treatment and laboratory rod draw down coater was used for surface sizing and coating application. Coating penetration was evaluated by measuring the roughness of the backside of coating layer. The backside of the coating was exposed by dissolving the fibers in a cupriethylenedimine(CED) solution. The results showed that both heat treatment and surface sizing were the effective methods to increase sizing degree and to reduce coating penetration.