The effects of various organic additives: Pearl glue, Separan NP10, Percol 140 and tetraalkylammonium chlorides, on zinc deposit morphology and orientation and on the current efficiency and energy requirement for zinc electrowinning from chloride electrolyte have been determined and compared. Tetrabutylammonium chloride (TBAC1) was more effective than Pearl glue, Separan NP10 or Percol 140 in smoothing the deposit, refining the grain size and eliminating dendritic growth. TBACl was also the most effective of the tetraalkylammonium chlorides studied. Tetraethylammonium chloride (TEACl) had little effect on the deposit grain size even at concentrations as high as 60 mg dm−3. Tetrapropylammonium chloride (TPrAG) was more effective than TEACl but less effective than TBACl. Small additions (10 mg dm−3) of tetrapentylammonium chloride (TPACl) produced a very fine-grained deposit, but the deposit edges were rougher than in the presence of TB