This paper considers the problem of delay-dependent guaranteed cost controller design for uncertain neutral systems with distributed delays. The system under consideration is subject to norm-bounded time-varying parametric uncertainty appearing in all the matrices of the state-space model. By constructing appropriate Lyapunov functionals and using matrix inequality techniques, a state feedback controller is designed such that the resulting closed-loop system is not only robustly stable but also guarantees an adequate level of performance for all admissible uncertainties. Furthermore, a convex optimization problem is introduced to minimize a specified cost bound. By matrix transformation techniques, the corresponding optimal guaranteed controller can be obtained by solving a linear matrix inequality. Finally, a simulation example is presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.