HfBx coatings were deposited on cemented carbide substrates by direct current magnetron sputtering (DCMS) and high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS). The effect of the deposition conditions, i.e., temperature, bias voltage and gas pressure, on the crystal structure and mechanical properties of HfBx coatings were analyzed systematically. The results show that DCMS-deposited HfBx has random orientations of HfB2(001), (100), (101) and (102), whereas HiPIMS-deposited one has less random orientations with high intensity in HfB2(001). Higher temperature, higher bias voltage and lower gas pressure lead to HfBx coating with stronger HfB2(001)-preferred orientation because of higher adatom mobility. The DCMS-deposited HfBx coatings have a columnar microstructure and rough surface morphology. In contrast, the HiPIMS-deposited HfBx coatings have an extremely dense microstructure and smooth surface, mainly due to high ion bombardment. Attributing to high crystallinity and high density, HfBx coatings deposited by HiPIMS have superhardness up to 49.3 +/- 3.6 GPa and high Young's modulus of 667.0 +/- 9.2 GPa. DCMS-deposited HfBx, on the other hand, have a much lower hardness between 27.3 +/- 4.2 and 36.3 +/- 2.5 GPa. Moreover, excellent adhesion (>100 N) of HfBx coating on the cemented carbide substrate can be obtained, originating from the chemical diffusion and the mechanical locking in the interface.