A stepped beam with immovable ends under the free and forced vibrations with large amplitude is investigated by using the finite element method to show the effects of longitudinal displacement, shear deformation and rotary inertia. A modified harmonic force matrix is introduced for analysis of finite amplitude vibration of the stepped beam under uniform harmonic loading and a beam under nonuniform harmonic loading. Numerical examples are analysed for deflections and natural frequencies of stepped beam under various support conditions. Results show that the proposed method is valid and efficient.