Manganese zinc ferrite is a soft ferrite material that has been used in many applications including catalyst. Therefore, studies on the mechanical and magnetic properties are very important in order to enhance the performance of the catalyst. This study will compare the mechanical and magnetic properties of manganese zinc ferrite (Mn0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4) synthesized by conventional ball milling and self combustion methods. Microhardness Vickers and Impedance Analyzer were used to investigate. Morphology and structure of Mn0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4 were characterized by using X-Ray Diffraction, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) and Energy Dispersive X-Ray (EDX). The catalyst characterization was performed using a Temperature Program Reduction (TPR). It has been shown that Mn0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4 synthesized by self combustion method has better mechanical properties (75.83 HVN) and magnetic properties with a superior initial permeability (2.5 � 103) and Relative Loss Factor (0.03) compared to conventional ball milling method. © 2011 Asian Network for Scientific Information.