An expression for the average power-handling capability (a. p. h. c. ) of microstrip lines is derived by considering the heat generated in the strip conductor and the dielectric substrate. The analogy between electrostatic fields and heat-flow fields is used for calculation of the rise in temperature of the strip conductor. The computed value of a. p. h. c. for a 50 OMEGA line on alumina substrate (0. 06 cm left bracket 25 mil right bracket thick) is 5. 26 kW at 10 GHz whereas the corresponding figure for polystyrene substrate is 126 W.