Propane, n-butane, and their mixtures are commonly used as fuels for various applications. Reliable numerical simulations of flames involving these fuels are most essential to study their efficient use in domestic and industrial burners. Such simulations require a suitable reaction mechanism containing the necessary kinetics to predict key combustion characteristics in flames accurately. However, the use of detailed kinetic mechanisms for these computations is formidable in multidimensional simulations, owing to their large sizes. To address this, in this work, a compact mechanism (45 species, 392 reactions) for propane, n-butane, and their mixtures, suitable for multidimensional simulations is derived and comprehensively validated against available experimental data in flames. The main oxidation pathways retained in this compact model are showcased. One-dimensional (1D) computations of premixed and nonpremixed flames are carried out using FlameMaster and Chemkin-Pro. Two-dimensional (2D) calculations are performed within ANSYS-FLUENT. Here, multicomponent diffusion, thermal diffusion, and radiation submodels are used. Laminar flame speeds, extinction strain rates, and amounts of major species in premixed flat flames are validated using 1D computations. Temperature and major species in propane and n-butane jet diffusion flames are verified in 2D simulations. Further, 2D computations using the compact mechanism also predict the laminar burning velocity of premixed flames of n-butane and propane mixtures established over a Bunsen burner. The ability of the compact mechanism to predict desired targets in premixed and nonpremixed flames is analyzed from a kinetic basis. Validation using 2D simulations demonstrates the usability of the compact mechanism in multidimensional computations. © 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC