Dissimilar lap joints of AA1050 aluminum alloy sheet and 304 stainless steel (SS) sheet were produced using pulsed laser welding.The effect of welding parameters on the microstructure of the interface and mechanical properties was investigated. The experimental results revealed that maximum shear strength 45MPa obtained when applied 8.3J as a pulse energy with 7.5 ms as pulse width and 8Hz as a frequency. All joints failed at the interface between the two metals and defects were present in the joint. Two phases as intermetallic compounds were identified at the aluminum and 304 SS joint, two of them, namely AlFe and Al13Fe4, were observed at both aluminum and stainless steel fracture surfaces. Tensile residual stresses showed a maximum value at the interface with narrow affected for aluminum to stainless steel joints.