Austenitic stainless steels are used often in the microelectronic and medical devices industries owing to their general corrosion resistance. To limit heat input in sensitive parts, pulsed Nd:YAG laser welding is often selected as the joining process. One of the drawbacks associated with the use of these alloys involves solidification cracking. Pulsed Nd:YAG laser welds were produced on 23 different austenitic stainless steel alloys of known composition. The primary solidification mode (PSM) and solidification cracking susceptibility of the welds were identified and correlated with their compositions. As with arc welds, the solidification mode and cracking propensity were related to the composition through the chromium equivalent to nickel equivalent ratio (Cr eq/Ni eq). Consistent with previous observations, alloys that solidified as primary austenite were more prone to solidification cracking. The results of this work were used construct a weldability diagram for pulsed Nd:YAG laser welding of austenitic stainless steels.