A design procedure for predicting low-cycle fatigue cracking is developed that is applicable for most mechanical and thermal cycling problems. Included in the procedure are effects due to stress risers and biaxial stress fields. Use is made of the uniaxial low-cycle fatigue curve and the “cyclic ”stress-strain curve, both obtained from standard low-cycle fatigue testing. Major aspects of the analysis include an effective strain parameter which is employed as the cracking criterion and the use of Neuber's equation to estimate stress concentration effects. To illustrate the use and validity of the procedure, data from mechanically and thermally cycled grooved cylinders are presented and compare well with predictions.