The objective of this paper is to clarify the difference between two analytical models for plastic design ofshear walls and evaluate their potential for hand calculation by comparing calculated load-bearing capacities of differentwall configurations with the corresponding ones obtained by finite element analyses. The first analytical model is basedon a true plastic lower bound concept, i.e. always fulfilling the conditions of equilibrium. The second model is based onthe assumption that the full vertical shear capacity of the wall is utilized, considering that the vertical equilibrium isalways fulfilled but disregarding that the horizontal equilibrium of the wall is not always satisfied. If the shear capacityof the stud-to-rail joints is sufficiently large, then the second model is also a true plastic lower bound method. The ratiosbetween the calculated load-carrying capacities of the two analytical models are in the range between 1.00 – 1.24 with amean value of 1.12 for the wall and load configurations studied. Results from FE simulations show that the firstanalytical method underestimates the load-carrying capacity by about 10 %, but that the method gives very stablecapacity values relative to the FE simulations. It is further evident that there is a good agreement between the secondanalytical model and the results of the FE calculations at the mean level, but that this method has a considerably highervariation in the capacity values relative to the FE-simulations. Performed tests of different wall and load configurationsshow about 30 % higher measured capacities than calculated ones. The large deviations are mainly due to differences inthe manufacturing of the specimens for the sheathing-to-framing joint tests and the specimens for the wall tests.