In the present work, we investigate the optimization of the heat transfer from wavy fins cooled by a laminar flow under conditions of forced convection and from a multi-objective point of view. The problem is addressed by means of a finite element method which allows to compute the velocity and the temperature distributions in a finned conduit cross section under conditions of imposed heat flux. Thereafter, the fin profile is optimized by means of multi-objective genetic algorithm which aims to find geometries that maximize the heat transfer and, at the same time, minimize the hydraulic resistance. The geometry of the fins is parameterized by means of a polynomial function and several order are investigated and compared. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.