An ASTM standard scratch test is utilized to study the scratch behavior of polymeric coatings on soft and hard substrates. Depending on the different combination of polymeric coatings and substrates utilized, various damage modes can take place, which include coating delamination, transverse cracking, and buckling failure. A soft coating on a hard substrate will give rise to an entirely different scratch damage pattern from those of a hard coating on a soft substrate. The stress and strain responses of scratch on polymeric coating are analyzed using three-dimensional finite element (FE) simulation. The analysis provides mechanistic insights for the observed polymer coating deformation mechanisms and failure modes. Usefulness of the ASTM scratch method and FE modeling to evaluate polymer coating scratch behavior is discussed.