In summary, our data indicate that the pN-C support increases the activity of Ru and Pt via several mechanisms. The higher activity of Ru/pN-C over Ru/C is due to a decrease of the overly strong HBE of Ru by the charge transfer from Ru to pN-C. The Pt/pN-C and Pt/C samples have similar HBEs and OHBEs, as there is no strong charge transfer between Pt and pN-C. The higher activity of Pt/pN-C over Pt/C originates from a more optimal interfacial water structure brought by Pt SAs as well as a stronger water binding strength.