This paper describes a novel approach for predicting the thermal impact of gas cavitation in hydraulic circuits. The developed model utilizes a thermal-hydraulic modeling concept for calculating the oil temperatures inside the control volumes divided from the Circuit, taking into account the gas evolution process in the cavitating pump. The heat generated by cavitation is interpreted as the result of the power loss consumed for compressing the air bubbles. An innovative equivalent method is proposed to calculate the total heat power rate induced by cavitation based on the previously developed gas evolution equation. In particular, simulation model for an open circuit inclusive of gear pump is built and experimental tests are carried out to verify the potentials of the proposed model. The simulated tank oil temperature is proven to have a good match with the measured data for both with cavitation and without cavitation cases, thus confirming the new approach. The present work allows a deeper understanding of cavitation effects on the overall performance of hydraulic circuit from an energetic point of view. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.