For thin-walled components loaded in the plane of the plate, verification of stabil-ity regarding plate buckling must be carried out. The verification procedure is governed by EN 1993-1-5. In this, buckling verification can occur using formulae or via an FE analysis. Currently, amongst other options, it is usual that the critical load amplifier, cr, for stiffened buckling plates is determined using FE software. Alternatively, a complete structural safety analysis can be carried out by means of a geometrically and materially non-linear analysis with consideration of imper-fections (GMNIA). In EN 1993-1-5 Annex C and in prEN 1993-1-14, fundamental information for the modelling and verification process using FE software can be found. Here, it is indicated that the user must possess precise knowledge regard-ing material models, element definition, edge support, load application, calcula-tion procedures and imperfections. In the standards, however, comprehensive information is provided on certain topics, while for others, only a few guidelines can be found. In these, the influence of individual modelling variants on the de-termination of ultimate load is not obvious. In this publication, clear operational recommendations are presented to the user along with additional guidelines for the modelling of plate buckling.