Seven stable austenitic steels (stable with respect to gamma -> alpha' transformation at room temperature) of different alloy compositions (18Cr-12.5Ni, 18Cr-35Ni, 18Cr-8Ni-6Mn -0.25N, 0.6C-23Mn, 1.3C-12Mn, 1C-31Mn-9Al, 18Cr-19Mn-0.8N) were tensile tested in high-pressure hydrogen atmosphere to assess the role of austenite stability on hydrogen environment embrittlement (HEE). The influence of hydrogen on tensile ductility was small in steels that are believed to have a high initial portion of dislocation cross slip (18Cr -12.5Ni, 18Cr-35Ni, 18Cr-8Ni-6Mn-0.25N), while the effects of hydrogen were significantly greater in steels with other primary deformation modes (planar slip in 18Cr-19Mn -0.8N and 1C-31Mn-9A1 or mechanical twinning in 0.6C-23Mn and 1.3C-12Mn) despite comparable austenite stability at the given test conditions. It appears that initial deformation mode is one important parameter controlling susceptibility to HEE and that martensitic transformation is not a sufficient explanation for HEE of austenitic steels. Copyright (C) 2012, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.