Clay soils are usually subjected to a time dependant strain under load. This strainrnis mainly a function of the rate of pore water pressure dissipation which in turnrndepends on the permeability of the soil mass. Therefore, consolidation is a term usedrnto describe the volume change of the soil mass due to pore water pressure dissipation.rnAmong the clay soils in the world, expansive soils have a special mineralogicalrncharacteristic which leads to swelling when exposed to moisture change. Thisrnbehavior is due to the presence of considerable amount of montmorillonite clayrnmineral. As a result of swelling, pressure is exerted by the soil on the structures builtrnon it and causes an increase in volume of the soil mass which also lifts the structure.rnConsequently, cracking of buildings, breaking of pavements, damaging of utility pipesrnare common problems on structures built on such soils. But under the action of heavyrnloads, greater than the swelling pressure, the soil undergoes consolidation.rnThus, this paper is mainly intended to evaluate the swelling and consolidationrnbehavior of expansive soils of Addis Ababa and their interdependence using onerndimensional consolidation theory of Terzaghi. In the course of the research workrnconsolidation-swell test was carried out on a number of samples of expansive soilrnobtained from different parts of Addis Ababa. The swelling and consolidationrncharacteristic of the soil is determined from the laboratory tests. Ranges of values of thernconsolidation parameters are also obtained. The swelling behavior is found to influencernthe consolidation characteristics of expansive soils.