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It is now accepted that a larger effort must be made in order to optimize the design so that offshore wind turbines can be competitive with the other energy resources. In this regard, mono-buckets are known as a cost-effective offshore foundation solution. In the current study, a load–displacement based approach is introduced to assess the bearing capacity as well as the deformation of a mono-bucket foundation subjected to combined loading. A p-y curve developed for the bucket foundation is used to quantify the lateral soil response around the foundation. A numerical routine to set up the model and run the calculations is proposed. The model is validated, and its accuracy is analyzed, by comparison with field test results for a bucket foundation installed in silty, sandy soil.