Abstract Ni–W alloys are promising materials for high temperature and structural applications. However, they show no plastic deformation under tensile tests. We electrodeposited bulk nanocrystalline Ni–W alloys from sulfamate baths that contained different additives, such as saccharin sodium, 2-butyne-1,4-diol, and sodium allylsulfonate, to improve the tensile ductility. Their orientation, microstructure and tensile behavior significantly differed. In particular, the sample deposited from a sulfamate bath that contained saccharin sodium exhibited a stronger (200) texture and good tensile ductility of approximately 5.0%. These experiments indicate that control of the texture is important to enhance the tensile ductility of electrodeposited bulk nanocrystalline Ni–W alloys.