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This paper describes the design and measured performance of a high-efficiency and linearity-enhanced K-band MMIC amplifier fabricated with a 0.15 μm GaAs pHEMT processing technology. The linearization enhancement method utilizing a parallel nonlinear capacitance compensation diode was analyzed and verified. The three-stage MMIC operating at 20–22 GHz obtained an improved third-order intermodulation ratio (IM3) of 20 dBc at a 27 dBm per carrier output power while demonstrating higher than a 27 dB small signal gain and 1-dB compression point output power of 30 dBm with 33% power added efficiency (PAE). The chip dimension was 2.00 mm × 1.40 mm.