Abstract A hydrostatic gas bearing can provide shaft support with very low friction in high-speed devices such as centrifuges and gyroscopes and in precision static devices such as dynamometers. For comparable load conditions, the friction torque required to rotate a hydrostatic bearing is from 100 to 10,000 times less than the friction torque required to rotate ball or hydrodynamic oil bearings. This paper presents information directly applicable to designs with optimum performance characteristics for hydrostatic gas bearings with inherent orifice compensation. An analytical and experimental study of a simplified model of the basic unit of which the bearing is composed and a similar study of a complete journal bearing lead to a readily usable design procedure for the hydrostatic gas bearing. The load capacity, or stiffness, and weight flow rate predicted by the design procedure are verified within 10 and 20 per cent, respectively, by experimental results obtained with an optimized bearing.