Yeah, string material/coating would play a role. Nickel strings I wouldn’t worry about.
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Labella’s and Fender flats are stainless steel.
Thomastik are nickel.
There’s a complication 
GHS flats are ss as well
Rotosound flats are nickel
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SS rounds will likely wear frets quicker than SS flats, but it depends on your fretting finger pressure and play time on the bass. If that’s heavy and a lot, that would quicken the demise of your nickel frets.
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Pretty sure it was Mark Smith that debunked the whole “rounds wear faster than flats” myth.
There’s also Jaco who used only rotosound stainless rounds on his fretless to no ill effect.
The problem is that stainless steel is harder than the fret material; the specific winding is immaterial. Rounds are smooth too on their contact surface; I would be surprised it it made any difference.
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Whatever works is good.
But a quick Google pulls up lots of sources that state that rounds wear frets quicker than flats. Including Mark Smith.
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Jaco also epoxied his fretboard.
Overall I’m probably over thinking it. What’s the worst that happens. I wear out frets, don’t have a luthier close by who can do frets, and figure to get a Warmoth roasted neck and just change out the neck. Or pull the fret wires and go fretless.
Either way, nothing to lose and adventures to be had
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Yep!
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Or monel
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Not to toss fuel onto the “round world/flat world” argument, i just thought these two recent articles were quite informative and interesting. I was once an exclusive “flatwounder”, but have evolved into a crossover player and have my favorite flats as well as my favorite rounds. I personally think one can be a superb bass player with either (as has been proven by some of the greatest bassists of all time), but the argument will rage on nonetheless. Enjoy,
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Yeah, it really depends on what sound you are going for and what feel you like.
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Isn’t that playing bass in a nutshell?
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Round wounds will chew up a fingerboard if you don’t use proper fretless vibrato technique, otherwise it’ll last a long time (unless maybe it’s a softer, unfinished wood) and you can easily have it refinished.
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you have to play a lot and do a lot of bends to wear out frets and then they can still be recrowned before they need to be replaced. Guitars routinely go 20+ years without a refret, esp if you have a light touch. I’ve seen it suggested that nickel silver frets on a guitar should last about 1000 hours and i expect they’ll probably last even longer on a bass.
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I was talking about a fretless, that’s why i called it a fingerboard and not a fretboard 
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Typing matters.
And reading is FUNdamental.
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Nope, its fundeMENTAL.
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Thanks @mike because I find you so annoying it’s actually good for my bass playing. I spend less time on here than i have in the past because you’re banging on about tonewood, strong fundamentals and chardonnay or some other ethereal navel gazing that my bass playing is improving faster.
So thanks again.
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“proper fretless vibrato technique” is also a tell
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I do like Thomastik Infeld flats, they do feel different and flex more than other strings. But the price is quite high.
I think it comes down to sound and feel for the individual, and like others said, isn’t that how it goes for everything?
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