The investigation is focused on the effect of Cr incorporation for Co/Fe in (Co 0.5Fe 0.5) 78-xCr xSi 8B 14 (x=012) amorphous microwires of 110 μm diameter prepared by in-water quenching technique. The rise in crystallization onset T X1 with Cr addition revealed the elemental contribution against devitrification and a consequent thermal stability. Cr is unfavorable towards ferromagnetic ordering leading to a linear drop in Curie temperature T ca with its rise in concentration. The presence of low Cr content upto Cr-4 at.% has been effective in drastically improving the Giant magneto-impedance (GMI) property. Cr content in the range of 4≤X≤10 has low magnetostriction and maximum field sensitivity in the as-quenched state. The GMI properties are further improved after annealing treatment. High content of Cr>10 is found to be deleterious towards GMI behavior and its consequent application as sensor material. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.