In the last two decades, different actuators like piezoelectric, piezoceramic...etc are used for vibration control of beams, plates and shells. These actuators are suitable for control of vibration with small deflections, which require small amount of control force. Recently, the electromagnetic actuators are used for vibration control of bending moment and shear strain of these structures. In cases, which require a large deflection and control force, the electromagnetic actuators are more suitable. In the present study a magnetic-electromagnetic type actuator is used for control of lateral vibration of plates. The operating principle of the actuator depends on the attraction or repulsion forces that exist between the two magnets in lateral direction. The theory of electro-magnetic actuator is derived using the classical electromagnetic theory. A finite element model was developed and augmented into the compression finite element model [1]. The theoretical predictions of the performance of the controller are validated experimentally. Good agreement is obtained between the theoretical and experimental results.