The efficiency of shear capacity models of reinforced concrete beams with stirrups depends on the assumed mechanism and in few cases depends also on critical shear crack angle prediction. In the present study, three mechanics‐based shear capacity models (the limit analysis‐based models presented by Nielsen and Hoang, and the Mari et al. model) are considered covering the range space of shear span to effective depth ratios greater than 2.5. The statistics of modeling error associated with these models are determined using the database created in this study. The database contains limited results of experimental investigations, available in literature, on shear capacity of reinforced concrete beams with stirrups. The randomness in shear capacity is quantified by performing probabilistic analysis of one set of nominally similar beams taken from the database. Based on the shear capacity distribution obtained, characteristic design equations of reinforced concrete beams are proposed. The results of reliability analyses show that the reliability of a beam, for a given mean live to dead load ratio, varies when different shear capacity models are used in the analysis. Thus, calibration studies need to be performed for selecting a model for design.