Ideal three-heat-reservoir cycles with constant internal irreversibilities and external heat transfer irreversibilities are used to obtain the performance limits of solar operated absorption cooling systems. Analytical expressions are obtained for the coefficient of performance (COP) and the cooling capacity of the plant. The results for ideal cycles are compared with those obtained by detailed simulation of the absorption machine. The ideal cycle models are found to give realistic upper limits for the cooling capacity and the COP of solar powered absorption cooling systems.