Chromium, iron and cobalt were determined in niobium by radiochemical neutron activation analysis. The main steps of the technique involved the irradiation of the samples in a medium or high-flux reactor, the post-irradiation decontamination of the sample surface, a two-step separation procedure based on anion-exchange from HF and HCl medium, and counting the separated indicator radionuclides with a well-type NaI-detector. For a 42-day irradiation at a thermal neutron flux of 8×1013 n cm−2 s−1 and a sample weight of 100 mg, the limits of detection are: 10 ppt for chromium, 1.5 ppb for iron and 4 ppt for cobalt. The results obtained by this technique are compared with data obtained by radiochemical proton activation analysis and atomic absorption spectrometry.