Abstract The progress of understanding of the epitaxy of metals on metals achieved in the last decade with improved conventional methods and with surface analytical techniques is illustrated with three groups of film substrate pairs: fcc and hcp metals on W and Mo (110) surfaces. Pb on Al, Cu, Ag and Au (111) and (100) surfaces and Cu, Ag, Au and Pd on each other. Attention is given mainly to the mode of film growth, to the submonolayer processes, to the charge in structure during the formation of the first monolayers and to the final orientation.