Cobalt-phase alloys have traditionally been used as hardfacing materials for nuclear power plant valves, turbines and pumps, since, in general, they show high corrosion resistance and superior tribological behaviour under sliding conditions. In nuclear power plants cobalt is transported to the reactor core region due to wear of valves and pumps. There cobalt is transmuted to reactive 60Co, increasing the radiation levels. The objective of this work was to find a cobalt-free hardfacing material having a wear resistance better than or equal to the widely used cobalt-base alloy Stellite 6. Six iron-base and four nickel-base alloys were compared to Stellite 6. Alloys were deposited on austenitic stainless steel by plasma transferred arc welding (PTAW), gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), plasma spray fuse and laser processes. One alloy was in hot isostatic pressed (HIP) condition. Alloys were tested for galling resistance in air at room temperature at mean pressures of 140, 275 and 415 MPa. Also the microstructure and hardness of the alloys were investigated. Post-test surfaces were examined using scanning electron and light microscopy and microhardness measurements. Self-mated iron-base Elmax, APM 2311, NOREM A, Nelsit, Everit 50 So alloys and Ni/Fe-base alloy combination showed better galling behaviour than Stellite 6. In particular, Elmax and APM 2311 alloys showed extraordinary high galling resistance. Instead of galling, the surface cracks by a brittle mechanism. This may lead to extensive crack propagation and finally large scale surface degradation. The nickel-based Deloro alloys showed a galling resistance inferior to Stellite 6. Since the alloys investigated in this study have very different microstructural characteristics, any correlation between galling resistance and microstructural features would be very inaccurate. Further, it was observed that the galling resistance was not related to the hardness of the deposit and, the increase in hardness caused by the high stress galling test is of the magnitude of 150–200 HV, independent of the pre-test hardness.