We present the results of a study where secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) has been used to obtain depth profiles of deuterium concentration on plasma facing components of the first wall of the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak. The method uses primary and secondary standards to quantify the amount of deuterium retained. Samples of bulk graphite coated with tungsten or tantalum-doped tungsten are independently profiled with three different SIMS instruments. Their deuterium concentration profiles are compared showing good agreement. In order to assess the validity of the method, the integrated deuterium concentrations in the coatings given by one of the SIMS devices is compared with nuclear reaction analysis (NRA) data. Although in the case of tungsten the agreement between NRA and SIMS is satisfactory, for tantalum-doped tungsten samples the discrepancy is significant because of matrix effect induced by tantalum and differently eroded surface (W + Ta always exposed to plasma, W largely shadowed). A further comparison where the SIMS deuterium concentration is obtained by calibrating the measurements against NRA values is also presented. For the tungsten samples, where no Ta induced matrix effects are present, the two methods are almost equivalent. The results presented show the potential of the method provided that the standards used for the calibration reproduce faithfully the matrix nature of the samples. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.