Abstract Phase Change Materials (PCM) allow storing thermal energy as latent heat when phase change occurs. In order to characterize these materials the phase change enthalpy and temperature should be perfectly known. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) is the most used technique to determine PCM's thermophysical properties. There are mainly two DSC operation modes: dynamic and step mode. A selection of the two most common PCM materials (paraffin and salts hydrates) was performed to conduct measures with the two DSC operation modes. The main objective of this paper is to determine the most appropriate operation mode for each type of PCM. A slow dynamic mode is recommended when analyzing salt hydrates with DSC. No significant differences between the two DSC modes were observed for paraffin.