A doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) wind turbine depends on the control of the system at both generator and turbine levels, and the operation of the turbine is affected by the electrical characteristics of the generator and the aerodynamic characteristics of the turbine blades. This paper presents a DFIG energy extraction and control study by combining the two characteristics together in one integrative environment to examine various factors that are critical for an optimal DFIG system design. The generator characteristics are examined for different d-q control conditions, and the extracted power characteristics of the turbine blades versus generator slip are presented. Then, the two characteristics are analyzed in a joint environment. An integrative study is conducted to examine a variety of parametric data simultaneously for DFIG maximum wind power extraction evaluation. A close-loop transient simulation using SimPowerSystem is developed to validate the effectiveness of steady-state results and to further investigate the wind energy extraction and speed control in a feedback control environment. Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.