Two different methods of analysis were developed in order to clarify the phenomenon of paper flutter. One of these is a flutter simulation using a Navier-Stokes code (N-S simulation). N-S simulation was used to determine the unsteady lift force, the amplitude of flutter, and the airflow around a paper sheet, by means of a time-marching scheme. The other form of analysis is based on a potential-flow analysis of an oscillating thin airfoil via an eigenvalue analysis for determining stability. The flutter speeds and flutter modes obtained by each method are consistent. Aspects of the behavior of paper flutter that had not been clarified in the experimental analysis were clarified by potential flow analysis. From the results of this study, it was shown that potential flow analysis is very convenient and adequate for a parametric study of this problem. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.