A novel and more efficientsynthesis of 14-alkoxy-substituted indolo- and benzofuro-morphinans in three steps starting from either naltrindole (1) or naltriben (2), using methoxymethyl or silyl protecting groups, is reported. The 14-O-alkyl group is introduced at the penultimate step of the procedure. This is an additional advantage of the described procedure since the late introduction of the 14-O-alkyl