•Acetyled and carboxymethylated derivatives of polysaccharide were prepared.•Their antioxidant and immunomodating activities were studied and compared.•The acetyled derivative with proper DS was superior to other derivatives.•The bioactivities are affected by the types of substitution groups and their DS. A water-soluble polysaccharide extracted from Ganoderma atrum was chemically modified to obtain its acetyled and carboxymethylated derivatives. The results of chemical analysis, Fourier-transform infrared and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy showed that these modifications were successful, although the molecular weight of these derivatives decreased due to slight degradation during the reaction. The antioxidant and immunomodulating activities of these derivatives were then investigated to determine the structure–bioactivity relationship. Results showed that the acetyled derivative with appropriate degree of substitution and lower molecular weight exhibited stronger antioxidant abilities on scavenging DPPH radical, and inhibitory effects in β-carotene–linoleic acid systems compared with the native polysaccharide. In addition, it also enhanced the macrophage phagocytosis capacity and tumor necrosis factor-α secretion, whereas the carboxymethylated derivative was shown to be slightly less effective. These results indicated that the type of substitution group and their degree of substitution play a decisive role in the bioactivities of the derivatives.