Carbon supported palladium-copper (Pd-Cu) bimetallic catalysts (PdxCuy/Cs) are fabricated by modified polyol method to enhance the reaction rate of formic acid oxidation reaction (FAOR) and the performance of direct formic acid fuel cell (DFAFC) through weakening the bond with the intermediate of formic acid. According to the evaluations, when the ratio of Pd and Cu is 3 : 1 (Pd3Cu1/C), catalytic activity is best. Its maximum current density is 1.68-times better than that of commercial Pd/C. Even from the optical and spectroscopic characterizations, such as TEM, EDS, XPS and XRD, Pd3Cu1/C shows an optimal particle size and a higher degree of alloying. This is because in Pd3Cu1/C catalyst, the d-band center that induces the weakening in adsorption of formate anion groups to Pd surface is most positively shifted, and this positive shift promotes the reaction rate of FAOR, which is the rate determining step. When the performance of DFAFCs using the PdxCuy/C catalysts is measured, the maximum power density (MPD) of DFAFC using Pd3Cu1/C catalyst is 158mW cm?2, and this is the best MPD compared to that of DFAFCs using other PdxCuy/C catalysts. In addition, in a comparison with commercial Pd/C catalyst, when the same amount of catalyst is loaded, MPD of DFAFC using Pd3Cu1/C catalyst is 22.5% higher than that of DFAFC using commercial Pd/C.