Currently, artificial joints only last 10-15 years after which they fail by aseptic loosening resulting from periprosthetic osteolysis. The bearing surfaces of the vast majority of artificial knee and hip joints in used today consist of a metal or ceramic material rubbing against UHMWPE. The root cause of osteolysis has been traced to the body’s response to the presence of polyethylene wear debris. Efforts are currently being directed at the improvement of the UHMWPE wear resistance. An alternative approach is the use of other highly wear-resistant and biocompatible bearing surfaces. In the present study we evaluated the tribological performance of the newly developed Argonne carbon coatings and two ceramic materials (alumina and zirconia) as possible joint bearing surfaces. Results of the present study show that a plausible approach to enhance the durability of artificial joints is the engineering of the bearing surfaces with a highly wear-resistant coating(s).