The effect of aromatic sulfo compounds on the internal stresses in nickel deposits is governed by the degree of their conversion into intermediates and the extent of their incorporation in the deposits. In the case of thiourea, the internal stress changes as a function of its concentration, corresponding to the extremes in its conversion kinetics. An analogous pattern was observed in class II brighteners-the lower the degree of hydrogenation of the additive, the stronger its effect on the internal tensile stress. The internal stress in deposits obtained in the presence of a mixture of additives was found to depend on their competitive adsorption, with attendant changes in conversion kinetics and in incorporation of the constituent additives. Knowledge of these regularities permits optimized design of additive compositions in terms of minimal internal stress.