The addition of Al, Cu and Mn in Zr-Nb-based alloys was evaluated through corrosion and hydrogen absorption tests in cold rolled and annealed conditions. For the studied alloys, the heat treatment resulted in an alpha-Zr matrix with beta-Nb precipitates and X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the formation of hydrides after hydrogenation in all conditions evaluated. It was observed that the alloy with Al addition absorbed the largest amount of hydrogen and the alloy containing Cu took more time to begin the absorption. The alloy with Mn absorbed little hydrogen but the onset of absorption occurred in a short time. The results indicate that the alloy with Cu addition is the most promising and the alloy with Al addition is inadequate for nuclear application. Copyright (C) 2015, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.