In the present investigation, the microstructural and mechanical characteristics of AISI 304 austenitic stainless steels (SS) plates welded using shielded metal arc welding (SMAW)were studied. The AISI 304 SS plates were joined using two different electrodes, typically, E308L-16 and E312-17 (according to AWS). Tensile and hardness tests were employed at room temperature to highlight the changes in mechanical behavior of welded joints. Both macro- and microstructure examinations have been used to evaluate the effect of electrode material on phases and grains structure of the welded joints. Microstructural investigations showed that the welded regions exhibited a vermicular ferrite structure distributed in austenitic structure with a varied grain size due to temperature distribution along specimens. The AISI 304 SS specimens, welded using E308L-16 electrodes, lower joint efficiency and higher elongation than those welded using E312-17 electrodes, also the hardness is higher when applying E312-17 electrode.