An assumed stress quadrilateral thin/moderately thick plate element HQP4 based on the Mindlin/Reissner plate theory is proposed. The formulation is based on Hellinger-Reissner variational principle. Static and free vibration analyses of plates are carried out. Numerical examples are presented to show that the validity and efficiency of the present element for static and free vibration analysis of plates. Satisfactory accuracy for thin and moderately thick plates is obtained and it is free from shear locking for thin plate analysis.