An investigation of the polarization dependent loss (PDL) of macrobending loss sensitive single fiber (1060XP) is presented theoretically and experimentally. The experimental results are in good agreement with the modeling outcomes. Through the comparison of experimental results of PDL between 1060XP fiber with coatings and bare 1060XP fiber, it is shown that the fiber coating has significant impact on the PDL of bend loss sensitive single-mode fiber. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 51: 1460–1464, 2009; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.24388