In this work, CrO x nanoparticle-and H + -modified NaZSM-5 was prepared by impregnating in chromium nitrite aqueous solution to form Cr/HNaZSM-5 composites. They were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultraviolet− visible (UV−vis), XPS, 29 Si and 27 Al MAS NMR, NH 3 −(CO 2 −) TPD, and N 2 adsorption/desorption measurements, revealing that the Cr/ HNaZSM-5 composites possessed moderate surface acidity and basicity due to the Cr species or H + partly substituting for the counter Na + and highly dispersed CrO x nanoparticles on zeolites. The obtained composites thus provided promoting performance for catalyzing methanol dehydration to dimethyl ether with >90% conversion and ca. 100% selectivity at a lower reaction temperature. The promoted performance comes from acidic and basic sites for activating methanol to produce CH 3 + and CH 3 O − intermediates, respectively. Moreover, as the catalyst works in succession over 500 h, the reactivity abatement is not found, suggesting excellent running stability.