The flexural tests of 6 sets of Q460 tube-gusset joints， involving three parameters of reinforced ring plates （unreinforced）， gusset plate widths， and axial compression force of the tube， were carried out. The results show that the load-bearing capacity of the unreinforced specimens is lower than that of the specimens with reinforced ring plates because of the stress concentration in both ends of the gusset plate. With the ratio of the width of the gusset plate to the diameter of the tube increasing from 2.5 to 3.0， the load-bearing capacity of the specimen with unreinforced， 1/4， and 1/2 ring plates is increased by 6.10%~16.07%， 13.36%~20.68%， and 9.61%~12.34%， respectively. Compared with the unreinforced specimens， the load-bearing capacity of the specimen with 1/4 and 1/2 reinforced ring plate is increased by 102.86%~130.73%， and 129.88%~166.33%， respectively. With the axial compression ratio of the tube increasing from 0.10 to 0.23， the load-bearing capacity of the specimen of unreinforced， 1/4， and 1/2 reinforced ring plate is decreased by 10.05%~17.77%、10.79%~16.20%、4.74%~7.05%， respectively. Several design guidelines are too conservative for the joint without reinforced ring plates. The load-bearing capacity calculation method of the Q460 tube-gusset joint was proposed considering the effect of the reinforced ring plate and the axial compression force of the tube， which agrees well with the test results.