CVD α-Al₂O₃ coatings on cemented carbides are widely used in steel turning, where cutting tool performance is strongly dependent on the crystallographic texture of the α-Al₂O₃ layer. Residual stress, cooling-crack density, and hardness are key factors influencing coating integrity during machining. Although texture has been reported to affect these properties, trends remain inconsistent in the literature. In this work, three CVD α-Al₂O₃/Ti(C,N) coatings with identical architecture, substrate, and processing route, but distinct α-Al₂O₃ textures: i. c-plane 0001, ii. r-plane 011¯2, and iii. a-plane 112¯0 were investigated to isolate the role of texture under controlled conditions. The 0001 coating exhibited the highest tensile residual stress and the lowest crack density, while the 011¯2 and 112¯0 coatings showed lower stresses and denser crack network. This behaviour is consistent with a texture-dependent thermal expansion mismatch, complemented by orientation-dependent stress accommodation during cooling. The 011¯2 and 112¯0 textures, with a greater in-plane contribution of the c-axis, develop higher intrinsic thermal stress and thus promote more extensive crack formation for stress relaxation compared to 0001 texture. Nanohardness values were comparable across the three textures. The results demonstrate that α-Al₂O₃ texture has a clear influence on residual stress and cracking, but a limited effect on hardness. These findings provide a more consistent basis for interpreting texture–property relationships and suggest that the performance of 0001-textured coatings in steel turning is primarily associated with reduced crack density and their response under directional loading, rather than with differences in hardness.