[en] Highlights: • Mechanically alloyed TiNb powders were sintered by spark plasma sintering. • Effects of sintering and deformation on phase evolution in TiNb SMAs was studied. • Free forging has improved the ductility and superelasticity of TiNb SMAs. • Transformation temperatures were also affected by the deformation and sintering. • The best strain recovery was observed with the deformed sample. Extensive research on the effect of spark-plasma sintering and free forging on the microstructure, transformation temperature, and superelasticity of Ti-23 at% Nb shape-memory alloys (SMAs) was undertaken. Based on the obtained results, it was found that the specimen showed significant results after deformation than the homogenization step, from which it can be concluded that the deformation has considerable effects on the mechanical properties and shape-memory characteristics of Ti-based SMAs. The microstructure of homogenized and deformed Ti-23 at% Nb SMAs consists of β, α, α′ and ω phases, while the sintered sample shows only β and α phases. Endothermic and exothermic peaks of the austenite ↔ martensite transformation are seen in the homogenized sample, then after being deformed, the exothermic peak disappeared. The highest austenite start and finish temperatures were observed with the deformed sample due to disappearance of TiNb₄ intermetallic compounds and a high percentage of β phase. The ductility of the deformed sample shows the highest value compared with the homogenized sample due the elimination of coarse α precipitates and brittle intermetallic compounds of TiNb₄, along with the suppression of the brittle ω phase and retaining β matrix.