Polypyrrole (PPy) nanofibers have been synthesized employing surfactant assisted miceller polymerization by varying the surfactant concentration. The synthesized nanofibers have been characterized using TEM, XRD, FTIR and UV-Visible spectroscopy. TEM reveals that the diameter of the PPy nanowires decreases with the increase in surfactant concentration. X-ray spectra shows an amorphous peak centered around 2 = 24.6 0 which is attributed to the - interaction of the partial PPy chains similar to that of aromatic groups. The domain length of the samples determined using the single-line approximation technique, decreases with decreasing diameter whereas the strain in the material increases, which have been attributed to the reduction of size with increase in the surfactant concentration as revealed by TEM. The vibrational bands observed from the FTIR spectra confirm the formation of surfactant free PPy nanowires.UV-Visible spectra shows a blue-shift in the - * absorption peak. Antioxidant activity of the samples has been determined using the DPPH free radical method. It has been observed that enhancement in free radical scavenging coincides with the decreasing diameter of the PPy nanofibers which has been associated with the increase in the surface reaction sites with the reduction of size.