The structural response characteristics of Tension leg platforms(TLPs) in waves are examined for presenting the basic data for structural design of TLPs. The numerical approach is based on a combination of the three dimensional source distribution method and the structural response analysis method, in which the superstructure of TLP is assumed to be flexible instead of rigid. Hydrodynamic and hydrostatic forces on the submerged surface of a TLP have been accurately calculated by excluding the assumption of the slender body theory. The hydrodynamic interactions among TLP members, such as columns and pontoons, and the structural damping are included in structural analysis. The mooring forces are estimated as the sum of pretension of tendons and variational tension due to longitudinal displacements. Stiffness matrices of elastic beam elements connecting nodes are formulated by ordinary method of three dimensional frame analysis. The equation of motion about the whole structure is obtained by the sum of forces and moments acting on each nodes.