In order to investigate tribological effects of coatings on different places on tool wear, commercial quality coated inserts were tested in production speed machining after the coatings on clearance or rake face of coated tools were selectively removed. The experimental results demonstrated that the primary role of coatings in tool wear was the reduction of the thermochemical adhesion between the tool material and workpiece. And the coating on rake face was observed to retard the progress of flank wear. In case of machining carbon steel, multicoated tools showed the most favorable results for considering the notch wear.