The Laboratory of Elasticity and Strength of Materials, in the School of Engineering of Barcelona (UPC), has gained a wide experience in pallet-rack testing in recent years. We have gathered a comprehensive set of experimental results from upright cross-sections subject to compression. Twenty different pallet-rack steel profiles have been tested. This information is valuable and allows us to evaluate different methods alternative to testing as a design option. In this paper, two alternative methods are considered: the analytical, by applying the European Standard EN 1993-1-3:2006/AC:2009; a traditional method, which involves the effective width determination for each part of the section subject to compression; and the numerical, by applying finite element analysis, including non-linear material and geometrical behaviour. The results of both methods are compared to the experimental ones. This research reveals that even though the European Standard EN 15512:2009 does only accept the experimental method for perforated sections, theses other two methods can give good accuracy, and be good tools in the stage of design and optimization. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.