The paper describes the technology of producing a wear resistant silicon nitride coating on cemented carbide cutting tools and factors affecting its structure and thickness. A review of domestic and foreign authors’ works is given on the properties and applications of cemented carbides in cutting, drilling, die stamping tools, wear resistant materials, for chipless processing of wood, plastics. It is noted that one of the promising ways of cutting tool development is using indexable throwaway inserts (ITI) with wear resistant coatings. The choice of silicon nitride as a material for cemented carbide tool coating is justified. The data on silicon nitride deposition methods, investigation of cutting tool structures and properties are provided. Laboratory and factory tests of Si3N4-coated cemented carbide tools demonstrated coating applicability in improving the wear resistance and lifetime of cutting inserts.