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[Display omitted] • HDH combined with spheroidization is a low-waste way to make U-6 wt.% Nb powder. • U-6 wt.% Nb powders made in this work have thin oxide layers, as thin as 5 nm. • U-6 wt.% Nb powders in this work show isotropic microstructures. In this work, we investigate the viability of the Hydride-Dehydride (HDH) process coupled with plasma spheroidization for producing U-6 wt.% Nb powders as an alternative method to atomization. The HDH process produces irregularly shaped powder with sub-micron U-Nb segregation and phase heterogeneity, and the subsequent spheroidization process re-homogenizes both the U-Nb composition and phase that is similar to atomized U-6 wt.% Nb powders. The surface oxide layer of the spheroidized powder is thinner than atomized U-6 wt.% Nb powders, ranging from 5 to 15 nm and display an isotropic microstructure, absent of large dendrites across the sphere as seen in atomized U-6 wt.% Nb. HDH also offers the advantage that oversized and undersized powders can be reprocessed. Combined, we demonstrate that HDH coupled with plasma spheroidization is a low-waste, alternative production route for spherical U-6 wt.% Nb powders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]