Abstract: The static status of a cable is described jointly by cable parameters such as cable shape, cable tension force and unstressed cable length. In routine engineering practice, with given cable force or unstressed cable length, static status of the cable need to be determined for subsequent structural analysis and construction. Through detailed studies on three conventional methods for static analysis of cables, i.e. exact catenary method, parabolic method, and Ernst method, the approximation assumptions of the latter two methods with respect to the first method are revealed. High-order approximation is then applied for simplifying the solutions of exact catenary method, and high-accuracy and non-iteration expressions for two different cases are set up for calculating the horizontal component of cable force. The remaining cable parameters can then be directly determined. Applications of the proposed methods and the three conventional methods in the engineering practice of Zhujiang Huangpu cable-stayed bridge are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed methods.