Experiments and molecular simulations were carried out to study temperature effects (in the range of 323 to 383 K) on the absolute and relative retention of n-hexane, n-heptane, n-octane, benzene, toluene and the three xylene isomers in gas–liquid chromatography. Helium and squalane were used as the carrier gas and retentive phase, respectively. Both the experiments and the simulations show a markedly different temperature dependence of the retention for the n-alkanes compared to the arenes. For example, over the 60 K temperature range studied, the Kovats retention index of benzene is found to increase by about 16 or 18±10 retention index units determined from the experiments or simulations, respectively. For toluene and the xylenes, the experimentally measured increases are similar in magnitude and range from 14 to 17 retention index units for m-xylene to o-xylene. The molecular simulation data provide an independent method of obtaining the transfer enthalpies and entropies. The change in retention indices is shown to be the result of the larger entropic penalty and the larger heat capacity for the transfer of the alkane molecules.