A theoretical investigation of the buckling strength of continuous steel girders with top flange restraint is presented. Girders consisting of two equal spans are analyzed using a finite element technique to determine the effects of partial and full restraint conditions commonly found in bridge design. The effects of loading conditions, span length, and web stiffeners are also considered. A refinement is introduced for the purpose of modelling inelastic behavior due to combined bending and residual stresses. The theoretical method shows excellent agreement with experimental results obtained by others. A parametric study is conducted using the verified analytical technique.Key words: stability, buckling, plate girders, flange restraint, inelastic behavior.