Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 O 4 precursor was synthesized by solid-state reaction at low heat using CuSO 4 ·5H 2 O, MgSO 4 ·6H 2 O, FeSO 4 ·7H 2 O, and Na 2 C 2 O 4 as raw materials. The spinel Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 O 4 was obtained via calcining precursor above 300°C in air. The precursor and its calcined products were characterized by thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry (TG/DSC), Fourier transform FT-IR, X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS), and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The result showed that Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 O 4 obtained at 600°C had a saturation magnetization of 36.8 emu g −1 .The thermal process of Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 O 4 precursor experienced two steps, which involved the dehydration of the five and a half crystal water molecules at first, and then decomposition of Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 (C 2 O 4 ) 3 into crystalline Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 O 4 in air. Based on the Kissinger equation, the values of the activation energy associated with the thermal process of the precursor were determined to be 85 and 152 kJ mol −1 for the first and second thermal process steps, respectively.Keywords Cu 0.5 Mg 0.5 Fe 2 O 4 · Magnetic properties · Solid-state reaction at low heat · Thermal process · Non-isothermal kinetics