Fatigue design of welded structures is primarily based on a nominal stress, hot spot stress methods or local approaches that have some limitations when coupled with finite element modeling. An alternative recent structural stress definition is discussed and implemented in a post-processor. It provides an effective mean for the direct coupling of finite element results to the fatigue assessment of welded joints. The applications presented confirm the mean feature of the method: mesh-insensitivity, accurate crack location and life to failure predictions.