When developing wind energy projects, concrete is sometimes used for support structures in ways which are uncommon to other industries. This can lead to the use of known design methods with input parameters outside the range for which the methods have been developed. The challenge with the applicability of the design methods is apparent when comparing the variations in results from the different methods. Design methods for shear capacity in structures without shear reinforcement are known to lead to quite different results in structural details common for wind turbine structures. This is the case e.g. for structural elements subjected to high compressive normal forces, for elements of high-strength concretes, and for elements with large thicknesses. The focus of this paper is the design methods’ sensitivity to high compressive normal forces, which is relevant for e.g. concrete structures for floating wind turbines. However, sensitivity to the other two mentioned design parameters is also evaluated, i.e. high-strength concretes (relevant for e.g. many concrete wind turbine towers) and large thicknesses (relevant for e.g. concrete slab foundations for onshore wind turbines). Differences between several shear design methods are investigated, and comparison calculations are performed to quantify the differences, and the results are presented in this paper. The long-term goal is to identify the design method which most accurately describes the shear capacity, even for more extreme values of the design input parameter. This is in order to potentially calibrate safety factors relevant to wind turbine structures and thereby optimize these designs. Future studies to reach this goal are also discussed.